Karuizawa 1981 35 Year Old Shibari Nawashi Cask #4059 Bottled 2017 - Wealth Solutions 70cl / 60.6%

A bottle of Karuizawa 35 Year Old Single Cask Malt Whisky from Japan. This was distilled in 1981, matured in a single sherry cask and bottled at 60.6% ABV in 2017 for Polish company Wealth Solutions.

This is the Nawashi edition from the Shibari series, inspired by the Japanese art of rope bondage. Each of the bottles in the series is tied in the Shibari style and is presented in a walnut case. The word 'Shibari' translates as 'to tie decoratively', and 'Nawashi' means 'A Maker of Rope'.

This is one of 45 bottles; it was bottled from cask number 4059.

Karuizawa was founded in 1956 by Japanese wine and spirits producer Daikoku Budoshu to supply malt whisky for the company's Ocean blends. Despite a rocky start due to import restrictions, the distillery began importing Golden Promise barley from the UK and producing a Scottish-style spirit which was matured in Spanish sherry casks, though it was still destined for the company's blending vats. By the late 1980s and 1990s, Karuizawa started to earn a reputation as a single malt, but this wasn't enough to stop the distillery closing in 2001 when its owner, by then called Mercian, was acquired by drinks giant Kirin. In 2007, UK bottler Number One Drinks started to release single casks of Karuizawa and these grabbed the attention of whisky fans worldwide. More independent bottlings were to follow, and with stocks depleting, each new release has become a major event in the whisky calendar.