In Pour This, Pair That, Whisky Advocate asks professional chefs to share a recipe designed for a specific type of whisky. Learn why these food and whisky combinations work—and try them yourself at home!

Although a decade ago it barely drew attention, Japanese whisky has gone from niche drink to juggernaut. And no wonder: the elegant, balanced characteristics found in many Japanese brands not only offer enough stylistic variation to find a wide range of fans, but also make the whisky perfectly suited to enjoying alone or, better yet, at the table.

“Japanese whiskey is all about harmony, where flavor,...

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Between forests, mountains, and a wide river, Japan’s mars Shinshu Distillery in Nagano is making whisky at full capacity again after taking a short break—for nineteen years. In 1989, a tax reform forced Japan’s distillers to nearly double whisky prices. Many small Japanese distilleries either reduced their production or closed down entirely. While it seems hard to imagine today, there was so little demand for whisky that in 1992 mars Shinshu abandoned whisky completely in favor of brandy. The now legendary Karuizawa and Hanyu Distilleries were able to hang on until the turn of the millennium.

Now, mars Shinshu is...

What defines Japanese whisky other than being popular and expensive? For one, balance. Few Japanese whiskies dominate or overpower; rather, the spirit’s characteristic style strives for a harmony of flavors. While an official definition for Japanese whisky has yet to be agreed upon, the prevailing notion is that elegance and mastery are achieved through balance. These craft distillers are certainly contributing to the growing category with just that in mind.

mars Shinshu

Komagatake Rindo Nature of Shinshu —88 points, $190 This fragrantly floral young whisky was aged in Japanese wine casks. Its texture is light and rather sweet, with a...

Football. The beautiful game. Or so I am told. I know nothing about sport, and the current World Cup fever has so far passed me by. However, I seem to be winning The Whisky Exchange HQ’s World Cup results prediction pool, and all of a sudden it’s become important to me how the competition turns out. And also, hidden deep beneath my cynical exterior is a modicum of national pride, and the potential of an England team reaching the World Cup final might even inspire me to watch a whole match. If I do, I will no doubt need some...

Another one of these new brands that try to surf the wave of Japanese whisky .

This is created by the little-known Matsui Shuzou, originally a sake and shochu producer founded in 1910. Don’t let them fool you though: like most of these unknown names, the Kurayoshi range consists of blended malts, made with Scotch whiskies (!) shipped over to Japan, where they are blended with small portions of local whisky. Mind that  Japanese whisky is not a clearly defined category so we can’t be sure of the nature of the spirits used: all kinds of grain spirits (even mixed...

A new Teeling 1998 single cask has arrived in Belgium. It is bottled from a  rum cask selected by The Nectar.

Teeling 19 yo 1998 (52,3%, OB for The Nectar 2018, single rum cask #100053)

Nose: great freshness. Starts on light honey, dandelions, then some tangerines, lemons, lemons and nectarines. Golden sultanas and some rummy sweetness in the background. Hints of vanilla and oak. Mouth: quite syrupy at first, majbe that’s the rum speaking, but it bursts open with fruits. Mango, pink grapefruit, papayas and banana candy. One passion fruit. A subtle green note and oak spices towards...

The seventh batch of GlenDronach Cask Strength , matured in their classic a combination of Oloroso and Pedro Ximénez sherry casks and bottled at the end of maj.

GlenDronach Cask Strength (57,9%, OB 2018, Batch #7)

Nose: lots of toffee and treacle notes, with gingerbread and walnut cream. Chestnuts and corn flakes. Roasted malt. Blackberries, sultanas and Spanish fig bread. mars bars. Just very light hints of oxo. Sherried of course, but not a classic sherry bomb as it’s mostly on the earthy / caramelly side, with a lot of malty notes underneath. Mouth: sweet and malty. Also...

This is a Swedish Maltwhisky from Box distillery (soon to be renamed High Coast distillery to avoid confusion with Compass Box). Box Quercus I is the first release in a series that focuses on different types of oak, in this case European oak or Quercus Robur .

This 2012 spirit was matured for four years in 200-litre first-fill bourbon casks before being finished for seven months in 40-litre virgin Swedish oak casks . There’s a very detailed PDF on the Box website .

Box Quercus II is based around Quercus Alba.

Box Quercus I ‘Robur’ (50,8%, OB...

A lot of really old Glen Grant expressions on this website, even from the 1940s and 1950s but very little current-day officials, which tend to live under my radar.

Glen Grant 18 Years is currently the oldest in the core range (the 25 and others are part of the limited editions. It is matured in bourbon and sherry casks. For Jim Murray this was the best Scotch whisky in his 2017 Bible.

Glen Grant 18 yo (43%, OB +/- 2017)

Nose: almost entirely on golden apples and juicy pears. Some bourbonny oak, including a floral note (light potpourri)....

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In 1968, Congress authorized the U.S. Metric Study in an effort to analyze whether the country should adopt the internationally accepted standard system of measurement. By 1975, Congress had passed the Metric Conversion Act and a U.S. Metric Board was created to help with the transition. For a few years, the U.S. measured lengths, weights, and temperatures using liters, kilograms, and Celsius, until the system was nixed in the fall of 1982. We would stick with our feet and pounds and Fahrenheit!

With one notable exception, that is. The spirits industry switched to metric units in 1979 and has used...