Japan

[Achair34]

Hello everyone. I’m a big fan of the forum. I’m taking a trip to Japan in a few weeks and was wondering if anyone had information on which bourbons I might find over there that I cannot find here in the states (Chicago specifically). I was also wondering if duty free (Haneda) or a liquor store in the city would have the best prices. I will be visiting Tokyo and Kyoto while I am there. Thank you for any input.

[EarthQuake]

Forget bourbon, think of all the Japanese whisky you'll be able to find!

 

In all seriousness, I think what's most likely to find over there is some export only stuff, like Blanton's STFB, 8/13 year old Wild Turkey, maybe some IW Harper 12.

[Jace]

There are a couple of Four Roses bottles limited to Japan. I'm not sure if they're still made, but you could be lucky to find a dusty bottle.

[Achair34]

1 hour ago, EarthQuake said:

Forget bourbon, think of all the Japanese whisky you'll be able to find!

 

In all seriousness, I think what's most likely to find over there is some export only stuff, like Blanton's STFB, 8/13 year old Wild Turkey, maybe some IW Harper 12.

Ohhh I intend to get my fill of Japanese whisky as well. I just thought I would ask about bourbon since this is the bourbon forum. Thank you for your input.

[JT3NSB]

wild turkey 13 distillers select and Heaven Hill 15yr (red label) are both easily found.  highly recommend them both! 

[berto]

If I were you I would search out a bar where unicorns are available for a better price than they are here vs hunting for a bottle or two that aren't really all that much better than what you can buy here.  

[camduncan]

I was there in 2016 and found a few readily available bottles not typically found elsewhere:  IW Harper, IW Harper 12, Blanton's Black Label, Blanton's Gold Label, Four Roses Platinum, Four Roses Black Label and Wild Turkey 13yo where the ones I was after and had no problems finding.  Most of these were also available in larger hotel bars.  Here's some pictures from a retail store I visited which might give you a better idea:

[Achair34]

1 hour ago, camduncan said:

I was there in 2016 and found a few readily available bottles not typically found elsewhere:  IW Harper, IW Harper 12, Blanton's Black Label, Blanton's Gold Label, Four Roses Platinum, Four Roses Black Label and Wild Turkey 13yo where the ones I was after and had no problems finding.  Most of these were also available in larger hotel bars.  Here's some pictures from a retail store I visited which might give you a better idea:

That’s great thank you. Was this at a liquor store or one if the big department stores? 

[Kane]

There is next to nothing whiskey-wise at duty free, bourbon or otherwise. I regularly visit Haneda and Narita.

 

Also note that Japanese whisky is actually cheaper in the US. Don't ask...

 

So I would look for Japan-exclusive Japanese whiskey, or get an age-stated WT. To be honest, I don't think it's worthwhile hunting bottles in Japan, I'd rather go to a nice Japanese-style bar and have a few high-end pours listening to live jazz.

Edited March 7, 2018 by Kane

[Achair34]

13 hours ago, Kane said:

There is next to nothing whiskey-wise at duty free, bourbon or otherwise. I regularly visit Haneda and Narita.

 

Also note that Japanese whisky is actually cheaper in the US. Don't ask...

 

So I would look for Japan-exclusive Japanese whiskey, or get an age-stated WT. To be honest, I don't think it's worthwhile hunting bottles in Japan, I'd rather go to a nice Japanese-style bar and have a few high-end pours listening to live jazz.

Thank you. Yes, my intention is not to go hunting per se, but I figured since I’m going to be out there I might as well grab whatever japan exclusive stuff that I can.

[camduncan]

I tried a number of unique pours each night in the hotel bars and restaurants we visited.  Based on those samples I grabbed several things when we were at a local bottle shop.  I didn't see any big department stores, just local bottle shops and 7-11 type stores with selections of alcohol.  My final tally:

 

 

[Achair34]

On 3/7/2018 at 5:04 PM, camduncan said:

I tried a number of unique pours each night in the hotel bars and restaurants we visited.  Based on those samples I grabbed several things when we were at a local bottle shop.  I didn't see any big department stores, just local bottle shops and 7-11 type stores with selections of alcohol.  My final tally:

 

 

Which of the lot there has been your favorite?

[camduncan]

The Four Roses Platinum is probably my favorite, but the entry level (very cheap) IW Harper would be my go to if I could source it locally.  The Michters was a gift, so I haven't sampled it.

[cdcdguy]

On March 4, 2018 at 6:18 PM, Achair34 said:

Hello everyone. I’m a big fan of the forum. I’m taking a trip to Japan in a few weeks and was wondering if anyone had information on which bourbons I might find over there that I cannot find here in the states (Chicago specifically). I was also wondering if duty free (Haneda) or a liquor store in the city would have the best prices. I will be visiting Tokyo and Kyoto while I am there. Thank you for any input.

Can't help with bourbon, but I have been to Kyoto and Tokyo. Had a great time. The people were fantastic. If you like rice, you will be in heaven! Go to a rice bar. It's an amazing experience. I will never forget my trip to Japan.

[VT Mike]

I came across a blog a while back that's all about bourbon in Japan. It hasn't had much activity for the last year or so, but there's some good info there.

http://tokyobourbonbible.blogspot.com/

I found the post about whiskey bar etiquette to be particularly interesting.

http://tokyobourbonbible.blogspot.com/2016/04/whiskey-bar-etiquette.html

[Kane]

4 minutes ago, VT Mike said:

I came across a blog a while back that's all about bourbon in Japan. It hasn't had much activity for the last year or so, but there's some good info there.

http://tokyobourbonbible.blogspot.com/

I found the post about whiskey bar etiquette to be particularly interesting.

http://tokyobourbonbible.blogspot.com/2016/04/whiskey-bar-etiquette.html

I can certainly attest to the pours being less than 1.5oz, *way* less than that actually.

 

I also remember reading some sort of article on whisky bars in Japan a while back. They were interviewing a Japanese bartender for tips to foreign visitors. The guy's recommendation was: "Please don't come"

 

That said, in my experience they were all very friendly and helpful, even when they didn't speak any English -- and many bartenders in Tokyo and Yokohama that I met actually spoke just fine. But I was always traveling alone, I can totally see a sizable party speaking in typical American voice volumes being a problem.

[Achair34]

I actually found a bottle of Yamazaki 12 today, and for $74! Pretty funny as that was a bottle I was planning to look for while in Japan.