Kanosuke 2019 6 Year Old Single Cask #TC001 Drifters Toyohisa Shimazu (70cl, 58%)

This is a single cask Japanese single malt from the Kanosuke Distillery in Hioki, Kagoshima, made in collaboration with the manga Drifters by Kouta Hirano. The label shows the samurai Toyohisa Shimazu, whose grave is in Hioki. The spirit was selected by whisky expert Hideo Yamaoka on a visit in May 2025. It was distilled in April 2019 and spent four years in Mellowed Kozuru rice shochu casks. In May 2023 it moved to a Scotch whisky cask, and it was bottled in August 2025 at a cask strength of 58% ABV. The outturn is 270 bottles of 70cl. The nose shows a mature, rancio character with raisins, strawberry jam and a hint of yeast. The palate opens with a pleasant woody bitterness, and the finish is long and warming.