Nikka Pure Malt Whiskey

Nikka Pure Malt Whiskey is a blended malt from Japan. Blended malt means every whisky in the bottle is malt whisky, with no grain whisky added to lighten it. That is the main thing to know about how it drinks. A blend built only from malt usually has more body and more pronounced malt character than a blend that includes grain whisky. Japanese blenders also tend to work with a wide palette of casks and distillates, so expect layered, integrated flavors rather than one dominant note. On the nose and palate, styles like this usually offer malted barley sweetness and soft fruit, often orchard fruit such as apple or pear. Vanilla and gentle oak spice typically come from cask maturation. Some blends in this style also carry a trace of smoke or earthy peat. The details of this bottling's profile, including its age statement, ABV and cask makeup, are not listed here. Check the label for those figures, and treat the notes above as what the style tends to deliver. For sipping, start neat in a Glencairn glass. The tapered bowl concentrates the aroma, which suits a blend with this many components. Take a first taste at full strength, then add a few drops of room-temperature water. A little dilution often loosens the malt and fruit and softens any alcohol heat. If you prefer a longer, cooler pour, use a rocks glass with one large cube. A single cube melts slowly and dilutes the whisky less than several small ones. Cold mutes sweetness and delicate aromatics, so on ice expect a leaner, drier, more spice-forward profile. Because the blend is all malt, it holds up well in mixed drinks. In a Japanese-style highball, pour two ounces over plenty of ice, top with three to four ounces of very cold soda water, stir once, and garnish with a lemon peel. This is probably the best way to bring out the fruit and malt. An Old Fashioned with a sugar cube, two dashes of bitters and an orange peel gives you a rounded, malty version of the classic. A Manhattan made with sweet vermouth also works, though a lighter vermouth keeps the whisky from being buried. If you make a Whiskey Sour, add a little extra syrup to balance the lemon, and shake it hard so the texture comes out smooth. For food, grilled fish, yakitori, salted nuts and mild aged cheeses all suit a malt-driven Japanese blend.