55% ABV

A blend of 2 casks, one each from Mars Komagatake and Mars Tsunuki distilleries. 100% malted barley that was lightly peated and aged for 6 years in ex-Bourbon Barrels. Bottled at 55% without chill filtration or added color. Lightly smoky and a bit of grassiness that is well balanced by barley sugar and tropical fruit. A truly delicious whisky that could appeal to those who are skeptical of peated whiskies due the wonderful integration of the very light smoke flavors. A gorgeous label and the bottle is packaged in a lovely box.

Producer Notes:
The sixth release in Mars’s Bakemono series, and the second that was matured at the Yakushima Aging Cellar (denoted by the initials “Y.A.”), this pure malt vatting depicts Nobusuma, a bat- or flying-squirrel-like creature that inhabits forests and is thought to be a tanuki, or shape-shifting creature. Though many tanuki were depicted as comical after the Edo Period, they were originally thought to be quite sinister; the Nobusuma, for instance, is known for attacking travelers’ faces and sucking their blood. No matter the intentions of this tanuki, it makes a compelling mascot for a blend that also represents multiple concepts, combining distillate produced by two separate master distillers in Nagano and Kagoshima before being matured and blended on Yakushima Island, a UNESCO Heritage Site where constant rainfall and subtropical temperatures place their own stamp on the whiskies of Mars.