MARS Maltage Cosmo -Blended Malt Whisky - Wine Cask Finish

- Bottler: Mars Shinshu
- Distillery: Mars Shinshu
- Alcohol content: 43 % vol.
- Declared age: 2020
- Features: GP
- Content quantity: 0.7 L
- Type: Blended Malt Whisky
- Cask type: Oak casks, ex-wine casks
- Coloring: natural color
- Origin: Japan

The Japanese Mars Shinshu Distillery stands for tastefully balanced, smooth, and very complex whiskies that strongly resemble their Scottish relatives. What makes the bottlings from the Japanese distillers particularly exciting is that they mature in completely different climate zones, from tropical to alpine – always providing a surprise on the palate.

The single and blended malts are produced partly in Japan's cold and humid Alps, where they mature very slowly at temperatures down to -15°C. Since 2016, however, Mars has also been distilling in Tsunuki, in the subtropical south of the country, between 36°C and bitterly cold temperatures. Mars completes its climate experiments with another warehouse on Yakushima Island. Here, with up to 76 percent humidity, Mars Whisky develops distinct maritime notes during its maturation.

This week's highly limited new releases showcase the full diversity of Japanese whisky makers. Mars Maltage Cosmo Wine Cask Finish is a version of the standard Cosmo bottling. The reddish blended malt, made from Japanese and Scottish single malts, received a fruity-aromatic finish in selected wine casks. With Komagatake Yakushima Aging, Mars expands its range of special bottlings. The 53% single malt matured in the warehouse on the coast of the tropical rainforest island of Yakushima and offers a taste journey from citrus notes to peat and vanilla sauce.

An absolute premiere is the single malt from Tsunuki – appropriately named The First. Distilled in 2016-2017, it is the first single malt from the southern Mars distillery. The cask-strength Japanese whisky with a distinctive 59% vol. is limited to 9,984 bottles worldwide.