Yamazaki 1984 First Bottled Pure Malt

Yamazaki Suntory Pure Malt 1984 Sherry Wood An extremely rare bottling of Yamazaki, distilled in June 1984, matured in sherry wood and bottled in September 1999. Suntory’s flagship distillery, Yamazaki was founded by Shinjiro Torii in 1923. The town of Yamazaki was chosen to be the site of Japan’s first commercial distillery due to its very ‘Scottish’ climate, and with it being an area where three rivers converge. In its early days, Yamazaki produced both malt and grain for Suntory’s blends, but the opening of the Chita distillery in 1972 allowed the company to focus on its single malt brand. It is now one of the world’s most desirable. The first spirit ran from the stills in 1924, on 11th November at 11:11am. Interestingly, not all of Suntory’s whisky is matured at the distillery where it was produced. Larger casks such as butts and puncheons are kept at Yamazaki due to its warmer temperatures, whereas the colder climate at Hakushu distillery is better suited to Suntory’s smaller casks such as barrels and hogsheads. The majority of casks however are kept at Suntory’s Ohmi Ageing Cellar, a vast warehouse situated forty miles northwest of Yamazaki.