Shizuoka – Contact S (2021) (70cl, 55%)

Contact S is a Japanese malt whisky from the Shizuoka distillery, bottled at 55% in a 70cl bottle. It is non-chill-filtered and has no added colour. Shizuoka was founded by Gaia Flow after the bankruptcy of the Karuizawa distillery, and it uses some of the historic Karuizawa stills. The label reads malt from Japan, the UK and others. The nose combines fresh grain, light smoke, white peach, green apple and soft minerality. The palate is richly malty, with toffee, roasted almonds, soft smoke, dried citrus peel and floral notes. The finish is long and warm, with citrus, smoke and a good balance of wood.