NEWS
TAIWAN KAVALAN’S SINGLE MALT WAS CROWNED “BEST OF BEST” IN 2021 TOKYO WHISKY COMPETITION
By Susan Lewis
18-6-2021
Source: 2021 Tokyo Whisky & Spirits Competition
Taiwan King Car Group’s Kavalan 10th Anniversary Sky Gold Wine Cask Matured Single Cask Single Malt Whisky has just been named “Best of the Best” single malt by the 2021 Tokyo Whisky & Spirits Competition (TWSC).
Kavalan’s products are big winners in this year’s Tokyo competition, having taken out four of the contest's top 5 single malts, ranking 1st, 3rd, 4th, and 5th place out of all single malts entered from across the world this year.
In second place is Japan Ichiro’s Malt Chichibu Malt Dream Cask for Dandylion Bar.
The Best of the Best single malt of the competition is determined by a two-stage process: the top 14 single malts in the first round are independently blind tasted again in a second round by a special team of 15 judges to find the Best of the Best among those 14 single malts.
King Car Group’s CEO Mr Lee Yu-Ting said Kavalan faced stiff competition among the finest single malts, especially those from Japan.
"We are humbled to be named TWSC's Best of the Best. We will work hard to live up to this title, improving our quality, smoothness, and complexity for both our fans and critics," Mr Lee said.
According to the TWSC, the competition is built upon the Japan Whisky Research Centre's body of knowledge and was created as the first major domestic venue for the judging of Japanese whisky and later became an international competition.
The panel of judges, numbering 202 this year, comprises mainly of bartenders from prefectures right across Japan and experts in the Japanese spirits manufacturing and wholesale business.
Kavalan Distillery is based in Yilan County of Taiwan, the company has been pioneering the art of single malt whisky in Taiwan since 2005.
The distillery draws its mineral-rich meltwater from the Snowy Mountain and Central Mountains, bringing a trademark creamy, sweet mouthfeel.
A subtropical climate and cold Siberian winter winds make the area the ideal climate in which to make whisky. The use of Scandinavian 2-row malted barley and two kinds of dry yeast create subtropical, fruity flavours such as pineapple, banana and green apple. Maturation is reduced by a third compared to Scottish malts because of Taiwan’s sub-tropical climate.
“Yilan is considered the Speyside of Taiwan because of the environment and our natural resources,” says Master Distiller Ian Chang.
“We have a hot climate, which is great for colour formation in whisky. All Kavalan expressions are caramel-free, unlike some other distilleries, so it’s all natural colours.”
(the writer can be contacted at: info@thewinechronicle.com)
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