Welcome to the 4^th edition in our “A Tale of…” series…

A TALE OF TOKYO

A whisky born of an obsession, Dr Bill’s obsession for the culture, fashion and food of Japan. The contradictory and multi-faceted nature of Tokyo inspired Dr Bill to reflect it into a whisky.

After a decade of searching, Dr Bill finally managed to source some casks from one of Japan’s most sought-after trees, Mizunara oak. The result is a whisky designed to bottle some of the wonders of Tokyo – multi-faceted, contradictory and always surprising!

THE WONDER MAKER – YAMAGUCHI AKIRA

Yamaguchi Akira’s oil painting works blend traditional Japanese techniques in the style of yamato-e and ukiyo-e brushwork with contemporary western techniques to explore new possibilities for contemporary art.

Known for his bird’s eye view paintings of cityscapes, combining modern topics and traditional Japanese aesthetic, Yamaguchi’s paintings open the imagination by using fukinuki-yatai (exploded roof) technique to draw you in to interior spaces allowing you to see into the hidden spaces of his work.

Inspired by a whisky as full of delicious contradictions as Tokyo itself, Japanese artist Yamaguchi Akira has created an illustration of Tokyo full of contrasts. He depicted daily scenes opposing past and present and playing with scale.  A few nods to the brand have been included in the artwork – Can you spot them?

Dr Bill: “This liquid is crazy. Its flavour notes are insane, dissonant and impenetrable.”

COLOUR: Reddish bronze colour ‘like the rising sun’.

AROMA: Pungent and herbal, with hints of incense and toffee, along with a curious herbal top-note, like saddle-soap or beeswax, followed by wood resin and a touch of cedar wood.

TASTE: A peppery mouthfeel leads into the flavour of chewy oak, fennel or vetiver root, ground white pepper, tangy oranges, bitter cherries, almond and wood resin.