Mars Iwai Rye Style Japanese Whisky
Mars Iwai Rye Style Japanese Whisky is a 100-proof (50% ABV), 750mL rye-style Japanese blended whisky — a bold vatting of Mars Iwai distillate from the Shinshu (Komagatake) distillery in Nagano with 95% rye American straight rye whiskey from Kentucky, bottled with no age statement — available to order online at Del Mesa Liquor, San Diego, CA.
The Iwai name goes deep in Japanese whisky history: Kiichiro Iwai helped commission Masataka Taketsuru's pioneering 1918 study trip to Scotland — the journey that eventually created Suntory and Nikka. Mars honors him with the Iwai blended line, and Rye Style is its bolder sibling: the companion to the celebrated Iwai 45, built for rye lovers and bartenders. The Iwai component (70% corn, 30% unpeated malted barley, double-distilled in Miyake copper pot stills, aged in ex-bourbon barrels) brings Mars's familiar smoothness; the Kentucky rye component (95% rye, 5% malted barley, aged in new charred American oak) brings the spice. Briefly rested in stainless steel before bottling, it bridges American rye intensity and Japanese whisky elegance in one pour — and at a full 100 proof it holds its own in cocktails and highballs.
Tasting notes (importer and trade): faint aromas of spent fireworks mingling with red fruit, hazelnut skin, hot cocoa, marasca cherry, and rosemary resin; a palate that evolves from cocoa and baking spice into black tea and bright fruit, with a finish of gooseberries and light char — rye notes pushed beyond classic spice into complementary chocolatey depth.
Why buy: At 100 proof this is a mixing staple with real structure — and a genuinely unusual bottle: Japanese blending technique married to Kentucky rye. Try it beside other Mars expressions or explore more rye whiskey and world whisky at Del Mesa Liquor.
FAQ — people also ask:
Q: What is the ABV of Mars Iwai Rye Style?
A: 50% ABV (100 proof), 750mL — a full step up from the standard Iwai expressions, designed with cocktail structure in mind.
Q: Is Mars Iwai Rye Style a Japanese rye whisky?
A: Not exactly — it's a rye-STYLE blend: Mars Iwai whisky blended with American straight rye whiskey distilled in Kentucky (95% rye / 5% malted barley). It drinks like a bridge between Japanese whisky and American rye.
Q: How should I drink Mars Iwai Rye Style?
A: It was built for cocktails — Old Fashioneds and Manhattans — but sips neat or as a highball too, where the rye spice and chocolate notes open up.