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Nikka 17 years Taketsuru

spicy fruity
4.6
(1)€295Japan, Blended Malt

Flavours

Whisky character

Fresh
Warm
Mild
Full
Smooth
Spicy

Taste mentions

Facts

Masataka Taketsuru spent years training in Scotland before returning home to build Japan's first malt distilleries, Yoichi and Miyagikyo. This blended malt is named in his honour, and it fuses whiskies from both houses into one glass. Yoichi brings robust, coastal weight; Miyagikyo lends elegance and soft fruit. Long maturation in cask adds dried apricot, dark chocolate, and a thread of spice that lingers on the tongue. Toffee and orange peel round out the palate before a long, cedary finish. It has repeatedly been named the world's best blended malt whisky. Pour it neat, in a wide glass, and let it breathe.

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About the distillery

Distillery

Nikka

Nikka is a Japanese whisky distillery founded by Masataka Taketsuru, known as the father of Japanese whisky, in 1934. The distillery is located in Yoichi, a town on the northern island of Hokkaido, and is one of the oldest and most respected whisky producers in Japan. Nikka's whisky is made using a combination of Scottish and Japanese techniques. The distillery produces several expressions of single malt whisky, including the Yoichi 10-year-old and the Miyagikyo 12-year-old. Nikka's whisky is known for its delicate and complex flavor profile, which often features notes of fruit, oak, and smoke. The distillery's blending skills are also highly regarded, and its blended whiskies, such as the Nikka From the Barrel, have won numerous awards.

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About the Nikka 17 years Taketsuru

Nikka 17 years Taketsuru is a blended-malt whisky from Nikka in Japan. It is bottled at 43% ABV and named after founder Masataka Taketsuru. Historians call him the father of Japanese whisky. He studied whisky-making in Scotland long before Nikka existed. This is not a single malt from one site. It blends key malts from Nikka's two distilleries, Yoichi and Miyagikyo. Each contributes malt aged seventeen years or more before blending. Yoichi sits on Hokkaido's coast, wrapped in snow and sea air. That climate echoes the Scottish Highlands, where Taketsuru trained for whisky-making. Its malt runs robust and full-bodied, built for weight and power. Miyagikyo lies inland, in a misty valley near Sendai. Its spirit leans soft, fruity, and floral. Nikka's blenders draw on sherry cask maturations from both distilleries. Together they created Taketsuru Pure Malt, the range this whisky belongs to. Combining Yoichi's muscle with Miyagikyo's elegance is the whole point of the blend. Nikka 17 years Taketsuru pours a deep amber gold, a sign of its long life in cask. On the nose, dark chocolate mingles with dried fruit and a lift of spice. The palate turns sweet, layered with toffee, ripe blackcurrant, and a savoury, meatycereal edge. Oak spice builds through the middle before easing into something softer. Fans of dessert-like Japanese whisky often name this as the style's high point. Nothing here is one-note. Instead, flavours arrive in waves, then settle. Taketsuru 17 Years Old has won World's Best Blended Malt Whisky at the World Whiskies Awards more than once. That is a rare feat for any Japanese whisky. The reputation rests on patient blending, not marketing. Nikka's team treats Yoichi and Miyagikyo as complementary voices, not rivals. Drink this whisky neat, in a tulip glass, so its spice and dark chocolate can open up slowly. There is no need to add anything else. Seventeen years of careful maturation already did the work. The glass rewards a slow, attentive pour.