CHICHIBU DISTILLERY 2014 Martial Art Trilogy Beer Cask 59.5% abv 70cl

The final release of the TWE Chichibu Martial Arts Trilogy is a 2014 vintage cask (#11049) that was sent over to Tamamura Honten microbrewery near Nagano to make a limited release ‘Shiga Kogen’ Imperial IPA named ‘The Far East’. Clocking at a mighty between 13-16% ABV depending on the batch – reviews of the beer seem to peg it somewhere between a West Coast style triple/quad IPA (not messing!) and a barley wine.

Nose: Floral, cereal and markedly beery. Pine needles, grapefruit and touches of bitter lemon give way to both maltiness and overt beer fermentation aromas. Pancake batter, apple blossom and Chichibu-esque stone fruits sit alongside pithy citrus hoppiness whilst explicit West Coast style ale (malty and highly resinous) runs throughout. Dilution holds the overall shape well – this is still 50% beer and 50% whisky. Cereal notes come to the fore with Cornflakes and crystal malts alongside background estery peaches.

Taste: By the power of Greyskull. Far from an inactive cask this. Orange marmalade and citrus peels join candied grapefruit whilst week-old beer ferment and malt loaf sits with apricot, peach and plenty of barley sugars. The development is entirely beer-led – again West Coast – dry, bitter and with prominent (hot) hop influence leached into the very heart of the whisky. Honestly, I’m at a loss as to what this spirit actually is now?! Water dials things down considerable with floral characters of elderflower sitting alongside a developing chalkiness.

Finish: Quite long. Lemon and orange peels, maltiness, resinous hops and cooling throat lozenge.