Karuizawa 1977 31yo 62,7% cask#6994 Wait La Mazurka Daily Dram. Whisky distilled in 1977 in the Japanese distillery Karuizawa, single cask number 6994. Karuizawa 1977 31yo bottled in 2009 for The Nectar in Belgium. A part of their Daily Dram series, the title, Wait La Mazurka, echoes Chopin’s refusal of Japanese whisky from Hokusai while engrossed at his piano.

Type: Japanese whisky
Distillery: Karuizawa
Vintage: 1977
Bottled: 2009
Age: 31 years
Cask: 6994
Strength: 62,7%
Bottling series: The Nectar of the Daily Dreams
Size: 700 ml
Cask type: Sherry Cask

Bottle location: EU

The Japanese Whisky

Karuizawa distillery was established in 1955 in the town of Miyota on the southern slopes of Mount Asama. It began production the following year, producing single malt for the Ocean blends from Daikoku Budoshu. Initially it was difficult for the distillery to obtain malt, but a lift on import restrictions in 1958 meant the distillery was able to experiment with the production of a Speyside-esque product, importing the same golden promise barely used at Macallan, and sherry casks. The subsequent quality of output saw it appearing in Japan as a single malt for the first time in the 1980s. Sadly, the Japanese whisky market was not strong at the time, and Karuizawa was closed in 2001 by owners, Mercian, and eventually dismantled. Its legacy is lives on however, with its still relocated to other distilleries in Japan, but predominantly in the hugely sought-after single cask releases that began to appear in 2007, from independent bottler, Number One Drinks. It is now one of the most prestige single malts on the planet, the reverence for which only grows as the remaining stock continues to thin.

Daily Dram – Karuizawa 31 Year Old Single Cask Single Malt Whisky

This limited release was distilled in 1977 and bottled in 2009 at 31 years old.

The whisky was selected by and bottled for The Nectar in Belgium, and is part of their Daily Dram series.

The title of the release, ‘Wait La Mazurka,‘ is a reference to the retort Frederic Chopin uttered to the Japanese artist and painter of The Great Wave, Katsushika Hokusai, when he atttempted to pour him a Japanese whisky while the former was busy at his piano.

If you’re lucky enough to get your hands on a Karuizawa dram, this should be the first bottle you collect it!