Following on from last week's offering of the exceptional Hakushu stable, we are pleased today to present to Cru's clients an iconic single malt that has done more for Japanese whisky than any other; the enthralling Yamazaki 12 Year Old.

Legendary whisky writer, the late Michael Jackson describes the Yamazaki 12 Year Old as "a pioneering malt in Japan" that is "intense, confident and elegant".

A haul of awards to its credit including a Gold Medal at the 2019 World Whisky Awards and a Double Gold Medal at the San Francisco World Spirits Competition in 2013 single this out as the standard bearer for top quality Japanese single malt.

First released in 1984, this whisky is far from the the first single malt released in Japan but the combined quality and enthusiastic reception around the world (including Scotland) have turned it into a cult whisky par excellence.

While first impressions of whisky give the sense of a Speyside-inspired malt with notes of sandalwood and fine balanced fruit, closer inspection shows a whisky of truly distinctive quality.

Aged in rare, Mizunara oak barrels which are fundamental to Japanese whisky's finely crafted style, this is not your average 12-Year-Old Single Malt. This is alongside, the Hakushu 12, one of the finest such age-statement whiskies on earth.

It is also, at times, surprisingly hard to find and we are happy to have a small parcel to offer of this un-missable malt. An essential addition to any whisky collection this is one to snap up wherever you can find it.