Review 239. July in Japan, part 2: The Chita single grain

Part 2 of this series on Japanese classics covers a grain whisky. As a category, grain whisky is often overlooked, and by and large, that’s understandable from an enthusiast’s point of view. Bulk produced grain whisky tends to cater to the needs of the blend market, after all, and therefore isn’t generally known for its depth, complexity or for bringing much to the table in terms of flavour. There are, of course, exceptions to the rule, and specifically we see quite interesting stuff appear when single grain is being released for the sake of single grain. Immediately Compass Box’s Hedonism springs to mind (although that’s actually a bad example as it’s a blended grain, but it’s made and released to emphasize what grain whisky can offer), and in recent times Loch Lomond has done interesting releases as well – albeit again with the not insignificant side note that they tend to use malted barley and distil it in their columns stills rather than  their pot sills. Closer on theme with this Japanese whisky series, we have Nikka’s Coffey Grain an Coffey Malt and all of these I would recommend you’d at least try once as they are quite interesting and decent all round, offering something different to what most malts would whilst not compromising on quality.

Also, when we’re talking about Japanese whisky as a category, regardless of it being malt, grain or blended whisky, there’s geography to take into the equation. Because there’s an awful lot of the stuff  about in Japan. If you take the latitude of Hokaido (home to Suntory’s biggest ‘competitor’ Yoichi/Nikka), which is Japan’s northernmost island, and look at places with the same latitude, you’d find yourself somewhere in the southern half France or, if you look in the other direction across the Pacific, in the state of Washington. Similarly, if you take Japan’ s southernmost point, that’s comparable to where San Diego is located, or way deep in the Moroccan Sahara. From Wakkanai in the north of Hokaido all the way south to Kagoshima, you’re looking at roughly 3000 km (some 1900 miles) of travelling. To put that into more context:  that’s approximately the distance between Paris and Moscow or New York to San Antonio in Texas. This not only to illustrate how ‘spread out’ Japan really is, but also to point out the sometimes vast differences in climates, altitudes, and so on between different distilleries.

Suntory’s 3 main distilleries (Yamazaki and Hakushu as malt distilleries and The Chita grain distillery) are all situated in and around Japan’s central belt’, roughly between Kyoto and Tokio (and keep in mind these two cities are still app. 450 km/280 miles apart). The Chita distillery, located at the Ise Bay in the Aichi prefecture  is home to a mild, humid subtropical climate, where summer averages around 28°C / 82°F, and winters on average go as low as 4°C/40°F.  So while perhaps not as extreme as some distilleries located in  downright tropical climates like  we have in India or Taiwan, the maturation conditions are subjected to significant differences in temperature, which at least suggests quite a bit of interaction between spirit, oak and its surrounding.

What’s more, rather than maturing the spirit in all but tired refill ex bourbon barrels as is standard practice  for a lot if not most of grain whisky, the casks used by Suntory for The Chita range are said to be a mixture of bourbon, sherry and wine casks, indicating this really is intended to be a full fledged alternative for a single malt. So let’s see what’s what…

The Chita  Suntory single grain whisky. 2016 domestic (Japanese market) release. 43% ABV, app €50-€60 (£43 - £50).

Nose

Initially I get a  classic ‘grainy’ nose, with a metallic- mineral sweetness. Luckily that fades quickly enough as it opens up towards notes of bubble gum, sweet corn, honey and vanilla. Add to it notes of breakfast cereal  and sweet butter/cheesecake pastry and you get the gist. Throughout it all, there’s a sweet and dense (pleasant, for the record) silicone-glue like element to things exposing the fact that this is a grain whisky.

Palate

Ok, this is really pleasant on the arrival! Pleasantly mellow effervescence and grain and cereal sweetness with a lot of honey and some dark brown sugar ( a bit like demerara sugar, or like the kind you spread over pancakes or as a topping on a crème brûlée) in the mix.  Again, there’s that note of sweet butter and cheesecake adding to the sweet sensations. Countering it, and preventing from becoming overly and sickly sweet there’s just enough of a dry-bitter oaky touch to it. Labelling this as ‘simple’ would not do it justice, and while this makes for easy sipping, uncomplicated  stuff as it is very accessible, it’s also interesting as it has some character and overall it’s absolutely decent.

Finish

 That  fizzy touch lingers with some peppery echoes. A bit dry and pleasantly long in fact.

Final thoughts

Absolutely enjoyable and pleasant stuff. If I see it at a fair price, I’m inclined to pick up a bottle of this stuff as it makes for easy drinking delights straight but would work excellent in a summer highball too, I reckon. I’ve mentioned an RRP of some  €50 above, but a quick browse tells me quite a few stores sell this at significantly higher prices, which would make me pause and reconsider. Just like the Hibiki I covered last week, limited (age stated) versions of the Chita are occasionally available, but (also like the Hibiki) these will easily set you back hundreds of your hard earned euros/dollars/pound sterlings… If you have a sweet tooth, chances are this standard version is right up your alley though, and well worth a punt. A classic grain whisky, but with a nice bump up in flavour and quality overall, and, provided retailers aren’t taking the piss re the price ‘just because it’s Japanese’,  one I can get behind for sure.