How to enjoy Japanese whisky on a budget
Japanese whisky has reputation as a prestige, luxury, expensive product. Luckily, as the demand is growing, more affordable bottles are appearing online and in supermarkets. But even supermarket Japanese whisky can be pretty pricy. If you are new to Japanese whisky, you may not want to spend £80 on bottle that you don’t like. So let me guide you on how to start exploring new whisky, without breaking the bank.
More quality, less quantity
Are you sitting comfortably? Then I’ll begin. I started taking a medication where I was advised to drink no (or at least, ‘minimal’) alcohol. This was a bit detrimental to someone who writes a blog about Japanese alcoholic drinks. Up to this point, I had a habit of guzzling nasty-ass, cheap prosecco on a Friday night. Don’t judge. I work hard (don’t we all?) and craved a little bit of blissful oblivion at the end of the week. But suddenly I didn’t have that option. If I wanted to continue my blog, I had to prioritise. If I could only have only one drink a week, it would be need to be one I truly wanted. And so, I learnt the lesson that a few high-quality drinks of something special was more favourable and rewarding that quaffing lots of something cheap and easy.
How many beers or glasses of wine do you have a week? Here was my breakdown, per week:
• 1 x bottle of cheap Prosecco = £7
• 2 x over-priced glasses of wine at a restaurant = £12.50
Total = £19.50
Per month =£78
Now, £78 per month can buy you either:
• 2x Akashi Blended Whisky, or
• 2x Suntory Toki Blended Whisky, or
• 1.5 x Hakushu Distillers Reserve, or
• 1.5 x Nikka Coffey Grain Japanese Whisky, or
• 1 x Suntory Hibiki Harmony
If you still think Japanese whisky isn’t affordable, maybe it’s a case a prioritising what you want.
Say what you want
When it comes to birthdays and Christmas, I’m terrible at saying what I want. When friends and family ask if there’s anything special I would like, I would defer with a demure demeanour. I’d shyly claim, “anything is fine” or “I don’t mind”. Until I reversed the situation.
When I buy gifts, I just want to know if the person will actually enjoy what I present them with. Other people must feel the same, right? Hence, I started asking for what I want. I bear in mind their current circumstances and estimate their price budget, maybe based on their past couple of presents. If I know they would be happy to spend £30 -£40, I may recommend a supermarket-friendly Japanese whisky. For anything else, I would ask for handy gift vouchers for taster sets.
Japanese Whisky Taster Sets
Taster sets are a god-send. If you are intrigued by the world of Japanese whisky but not sure where is best to invest, a taster set can give you a sweet little sample of your choosing. I recently bought this Japanese whisky taster set from Master of Malt. I was free to create my own choice of whiskies from their range. As you can see, this gave me the opportunity to sample some whisky from distilleries I had not tried before. Plus, I can have a little taste of rarer, older bottles which are more expensive, such as the Nikka 12 Year Old.
Do your research
Spend a little time reading about which Japanese whiskies may be in your price range and what they taste like. There are plenty of credible, trustworthy whisky sites that offer their taste notes to give you a good idea how the whisky will taste. Hey, look! You have already found one! Read some of my Japanese whisky reviews here.
Ready to explore the exciting world of Japanese whisky? Learn more with Japanese whisky blogs by Kanpai Drinks.
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