SP18 Hatozaki Whisky Small Batch
A 100% malt whisky from the Kaikyo Distillery in Akashi City, Small Batch Pure Malt is a vatting of 5-to-6-year-old single malts, matured across a trio of cask types: ex-bourbon, ex-sherry, and native Mizunara oak sourced from the forests of Hokkaido and Tohoku. Produced in small batches of fewer than 20 casks, it's never colored and left unchill-filtered, resulting in a naturally pale straw color. Described by the distillery as round, generous, and unpeated, it opens with sweet malted cereal and dried fruit, lifted by a light smoky undertone and rounding out to an aromatic honey finish. Bottled at 46% ABV, this is a fuller, more textured sipping whisky than Hatozaki's lighter Finest expression — built for those who want a bit more depth and complexity in the glass.
ABOUT THE NAME
Like the rest of the Hatozaki range, Small Batch takes its name from the Hatozaki Lighthouse — the oldest stone lighthouse in Japan, standing watch over ships entering the port of Akashi since 1620. The Kaikyo Distillery itself sits near the Akashi-Kaikyo Bridge, and the brand's imagery draws throughout on the maritime heritage of its Hyogo Prefecture home.
STYLE: PURE MALT (BLENDED MALT) WHISKY
AGE: 5–6 YEARS
CASK TYPES: EX-BOURBON, EX-SHERRY, MIZUNARA OAK (HOKKAIDO/TOHOKU)
BATCH SIZE: UNDER 20 CASKS PER BATCH
SPECIAL NOTES: UNDER NEW 2024 LABELING STANDARDS, BLENDS CONTAINING NON-JAPANESE-DISTILLED SPIRIT CANNOT BE MARKETED AS "JAPANESE WHISKY"
