Makoto Single Grain 23 Year Old Japanese Whisky
Makoto Single Grain 23 Year Old Japanese Whisky is a rare long-aged grain whisky from the Kumesen Distillery in Okinawa, Japan — the second expression in the Bushido series, named for Makoto, the samurai virtue of honesty and sincerity. Distilled and bottled at Kumesen and aged 23 years in ex-bourbon casks (distilled 1995, bottled 2019), it is a column-distilled single grain of remarkable softness and depth, bottled at 42% ABV (84 proof) in a 750mL bottle. Available to order online from Del Mesa Liquor in San Diego, CA.
- ABV: 42% (84 proof)
- Size: 750mL
- Age: 23 years in ex-bourbon casks; distilled 1995, bottled 2019
- Distillery: Kumesen Distillery, Okinawa, Japan
- Series: Bushido series — second expression; "Makoto" = honesty/sincerity, the warrior's consistency between words and deeds
- Acclaim: 90 points, Wine Enthusiast (Kara Newman, 2021)
Twenty-Three Years of Honesty
Kumesen Syuzo was founded in 1952 in Okinawa, the islands once known as Ryukyu, and spent its early decades distilling awamori — the indigenous spirit made from long-grain indica rice — before starting to mature its spirit in oak barrels around 1989, creating a unique ji-whisky in a category of its own. The Bushido series turns that heritage toward aged whisky: each of the seven bottles represents a different Bushido virtue with its own label, and Makoto — honesty — drew the long-matured grain expression. Two-plus decades in ex-bourbon casks gives this column-distilled spirit a depth and softness few Japanese single grains reach. Compare it with the line's other Makoto bottlings or browse the store's whisky collection.
Tasting Notes
Retailer and reviewer notes converge: ginger and spice over terrific woody notes, with a distant buttery caramel running through the middle and end. Dark chocolate and touches of cinnamon give way to hard lemon candy and melted-caramel sweetness. The finish is heavy in sweetness, with lasting notes of licorice that echo the opening dark chocolate. Wine Enthusiast found "rich, Sherried fruit aromas," waxy honeycomb, black pepper, and clove on the palate, adding water lightens it to golden raisin and mild oak.
How to Enjoy
Pour it neat in a tulip glass — at 23 years, the oak has done all the work and the spirit needs nothing else. A drop or two of water is the only intervention worth trying, softening the spice into golden raisin and mild oak per the Wine Enthusiast review.
Frequently Asked Questions
What does "Makoto" mean?In Bushido, the unwritten samurai code of conduct, Makoto is the principle of honesty and sincerity — the warrior's consistency between words and deeds. The whisky was crafted with this virtue as its inspiration.
Where is Makoto 23 Year made?At the Kumesen Distillery in Okinawa, Japan — founded in 1952 as an awamori producer and maturing spirit in oak since about 1989.
Is Makoto 23 Year a malt whisky?No — it is a single grain whisky, distilled in column stills rather than pot stills. Single grain Japanese whiskies tend to run lighter, softer, and sweeter than malt whiskies.
Is this bottle limited?Yes — retailers describe a strictly limited bottling, and it sits on the store's clearance tag list, so when the shelf stock is gone it is unlikely to return.
Twenty-three years of Okinawan patience in one bottle — order Makoto 23 Year online at Del Mesa Liquor in San Diego, CA.