Mizunara oak barrels and their extravagance

Mizunara (bot.: quercus crispula) – a name that immediately lets us know where the journey will probably go. To the countries of the rising sun – towards the Far East, or rather to Japan.

Historical outline

The first Mizunara barrel was born during a dark period of world history.
At the time of the Second World War, there was a shortage of all kinds of daily necessities in Japan, such as food, medicines, etc. – so one might think that no one cared about the consumption of whiskey. But wrongly thought: the drink was especially popular with the occupying troops. Unlike in Europe, where the construction of wooden barrels has a history of thousands of years, the Japanese whiskey producers had to venture into wooden barrels for the first time.

What is behind the Mizunara oak?

The term Mizunara is composed of two words: Mizu- which means water in Japan and Nara which stands for oak.

The Mizunara oak is characterized by its very high water content, which entails a much longer drying process than we know from the Quercus oak. Another special characteristic is the comparatively slow and twisted growth. The added frequent branch growths additionally minimize the gain of the raw material.

Before the logs of the Mizunara oak are sold at public auctions, they grow on average for a whole 200 years. Already here, the raw material is of enormous value – without this even having left the forest.

A challenge for experienced coopers

Due to the original high water content and fragility of the wood, it needs special care and skill for processing. The slightest carelessness can cause cracks in the valuable wood and make it unusable. Due to the high water retention, the wood also lacks water-resistant oil enzymes , which also requires special know-how in the sealing of the barrels.
Although all these qualities do not sound quite favorable, the advantages of this particular wood can not be denied.

The special something

The twisted growth of the oak gives the distillate the possibility of even more intense extraction of the aromas of a Mizunara oak.
The Mizurana oak brings an enormous and also not quite ordinary variety of aromas: from clear vanilla, sandalwood, coconut, sweet and strong spice and incense. In other words, a package that can be found only rarely. The only very low tannin content puts the characteristically strong wood tones increasingly in the background and gives the distillate and the flavors more development opportunities.

Is the extravagance worth it?

This question is certainly asked by one or the other. Is it worth investing in a Mizunara barrel?
We can only say – YES!
The variety of flavors alone speaks for itself. The very low availability on the European market shows itself to be an absolutely unique feature.
Distillates are created here that make every connoisseur and collector’s heart beat faster. Whether in the form of a blend, single malt or in the regular distillate maturation.

Even distillers in Japan have problems to get such barrels. Often the mere name on a label “Mizunara” is enough to arouse great desire – and if the taste is right…!

The biggest hurdle here is certainly the time; many experts argue here for a very long barrel aging to be able to mature the complete aroma world of the water oak in the distillate. We are talking here about 15-20 years and thus exclusive products.
Trying such a product is worth it in all cases!

The personal impression

I had the pleasure of tasting a Mizunara full maturation in the past few days.
The difference to the known oak barrels could not be greater. Soft and round in taste, the exoticism of the barrel picks you up directly. There will certainly be some new introductions on the German and European market in the coming years. The work behind it: on the one hand to build these barrels in the first place and on the other hand to get the barrels to Europe in the first place is almost a topic in itself. So it’s all the nicer when we can taste a glass or two with them.