La Maison du Whisky’s latest Itinéraires (or Itineraries) catalogue for 2026 parks us back in very familiar territory: another four-bottle single cask Chichibu set, this time titled “In The Wake of Silence”.

Since 2022, LMDW has been quietly turning this idea into a running series, dropping a thematic quartet of Chichibu single casks in whichever catalogue they are running that year, each time with a different artist brought in to shape the visual identity. LMDW has long treated Chichibu as one of its anchor partners for limited bottlings, so it’s difficult not to see this recurring single cask four-pack as a yearly health check on how the distillery’s stock and style are evolving.

The Chichibu Whisky x Katsumi Komagata Set released in 2023

This is now the fourth time we are sitting down with a Chichibu–La Maison du Whisky quartet, and by this point you can look back and actually see the whisky growing up alongside the distillery itself: the labels change, the artists change, but the spirit behind the glass is clearly maturing.

For the newest “Hongo set”, Japanese artist Yoshiya Hongo (本郷芳哉) was invited to create an original work of art for each of the four single cask Chichibu expressions. Hongo is best known as a contemporary sculptor who works primarily in metal, often aluminium, and uses processes like heating, hammering and controlled deformation to explore ideas of boundaries (境界) - inside versus outside, and how materials record time.

(Source: Yoshiya Hongo)

Interestingly, Sato’s brief for this project comes not from a whisky writer or sommelier, but from Michelin-starred chef Shinichi Sato of Blanc in Paris. Sato wrote the tasting notes, then Hongo used those notes as a prompt to build abstract aluminium sculptures that “translate” each whisky’s aromatic and flavour profile into physical form.

(Source: Bungo Kimura)

Once the sculptures were completed, Hongo travelled up to Chichibu Distillery in Saitama Prefecture to photograph the pieces. Each image shows the four artworks staged against elements that stand in for the building blocks of Chichibu’s single malt: barley, the grain that sits at the very beginning of the whisky; fire, used for toasting and charring the barrels; the earth of the cellars where the casks rest; and finally the sky, a nod to the angels’ share that evaporates away during maturation.

(Image Source: The Whisky Wash) 

Stepping back from the art, the numbers across these four annual sets tell their own story. In the early years of this series, the age “floor” sat at six years old, with six-year-old casks appearing in both the first and second sets, and a ceiling at around eight years. By the time we get to the latest collection, the youngest whisky in the line-up has moved up to seven years of age. The top end has shifted too: that first series stopped at eight years, but both the third and this fourth “In The Wake of Silence” set now stretch to ten years. It feels like we are stepping into a phase where older Chichibu stock is not a rare cameo but something that can show up more consistently in prestige releases.

Cask-wise, bourbon barrels act as the backbone every single time. In each four-bottle collection, ex-bourbon often shows up at least twice, and that continues in the Hongo set – considering the distillery’s well documented preference for bourbon maturation as base, this is not surprising. There is a subtle shift in fill status though. Earlier sets leaned more heavily on second fill barrels. With “In The Wake of Silence”, two of the four whiskies are explicitly drawn from first fill bourbon. It is tempting to read that as a sign of growing confidence in how Chichibu’s spirit behaves in more active wood.

Each annual set has also carried at least one “accent” cask that whisky fans would circle in red. In the first and second releases, Koshu wine casks (Japanese white wine from pink-skinned Koshu grapes) filled that role. By the third set, the accent cask came from Bordeaux in the form of a red wine barrel sourced from respected Pauillac estate Grand Puy Lacoste.

But the Hongo set feels like the most adventurous in terms of cask type. For the first time, Chichibu is introducing a cider cask. Cider cask maturation is fairly uncommon in Japanese whisky and remains unusual globally outside a handful of experimental bottlings. It suggests that Ichiro Akuto’s team is actively widening Chichibu’s cask vocabulary beyond the established bourbon, wine, sherry repertoire.

The Chichibu x Kunihiko Moriguchi set released in late 2024 wears a label inspired by yuzen kimono decorative patterns.

The way the collaborations are structured seems to have developed too. Earlier sets worked more in the realm of straightforward label art with paintings, graphic design treatments, kimono-inspired patterns. For the Hongo set, the concept reaches further with three-dimensional aluminium sculptures that respond to Sato’s tasting notes photographed in the distillery’s environment. Bringing in a Michelin-starred chef into the brief also appears to frame the whiskies less as cultish collector trophies and more as a drink that can be appreciated by all and potentially paired in a tasting menu.

Here is a brief run-down of the Hongo line-up:

• Chichibu 7 Years Old 2017 Heavily Peated First-Fill Bourbon Single Cask #8282
• Chichibu 7 Years Old 2017 Cider Cask Single Cask #14329
• Chichibu 8 Years Old 2017 First Fill Bourbon Single Cask #7492
• Chichibu 10 Year Old 2014 Oloroso Sherry Cask Finish Single Cask #10416

With all that framing, here’re our impressions from Whisky Live Singapore 2025.

Whisky Review: Chichibu 7 Years Old 2017 Heavily Peated,65.4% ABV

Single Cask #8282, First-Fill Bourbon Barrel, Limited Edition of 176 Bottles

Tasting Notes

Appearance: Yellow gold.

Nose: Dense, aromatic and clearly smoke-led, with a dry herbal profile. Opens on aromatic incense and burnt sage, followed by burnt sugar that gives a darker, lightly caramelised sweetness. A distinct herbaceous character runs through it, with fresh green herbs and a light minty coolness, rosemary, pine and juniper, with the juniper and rosemary giving a firm resinous spice that reads almost gin-like. Goes on to cinnamon, ginger and black pepper appearing in layers. Underneath that, there is a classic orchard-fruit layer of apple and pear, plus a small lift of pomelo peel. Very light camphor note in the background adding a faint medicinal coolness.

Palate: Thick, chewy and immediate, with a bold, concentrated arrival that brings sweetness, smoke and spice together. It opens with a lot of caramel and honey, quickly checked by roasted dry malt, opening to an orchard-fruit core, mainly apples and pear sitting alongside smoked lemon and yuzu. A slightly powdery floral character appears through the middle. The texture stays dense, but there is a drying frame around it from dark tea tannins at the edges. I also get a clean fresh linens-like note. Smoke remains integrated through the palate, carrying the herbal and citrus notes forward.

Finish: Long and trailing, gradually shifting from light ashy smoke into drier smoked florals, with the herbal notes lingering the longest. Slightly honeyed before the profile turns drier and more aromatic. Smoked lavender and other smoked floral tones give a slightly perfumed but still dry character. A pepper, pine and juniper-like spiced heat continues to build through the back palate and tail. Savoury dried sage and dried basil re-emerge. There is also a faint roasted tea warmth right at the end.

My Thoughts

This is aromatic, tightly built, high-intensity and very precise in profile with the first fill bourbon cask supporting body and sweetness while still leaving plenty of room for the peat and herb-driven distillate character to show.

The peated Chichibu leans firmly towards dry herbal smoke, resinous spice and structured sweetness rather than soft vanilla sweetness or purely medicinal peat. The high strength also shows up more as weight and concentration than raw heat, with a thick, chewy texture, a strong caramel-and-honey opening, and then a controlled shift into roasted malt, smoked citrus, florals and tea-like grip. At cask strength, the alcohol runs warm but very manageable, cushioned well by the fruit, smoke and herbs.

Whisky Review: Chichibu 7 Years Old 2017 Cider Cask, 61.4% ABV

Single Cask #14329, Cider Cask,Limited Edition of 219 Bottles

Tasting Notes

Appearance: Deep gold.

Nose: Rich, rounded and very honeyed, with a strong orchard-fruit profile and a light smoke layer woven through it. It opens very luscious with honey with lots of apple and pear, then gradually moves into grilled apples and grilled pears with a slightly caramelised fruit character. Some warm baking-spice and pastry-crust. A soft smoky thread runs underneath from early on, and it gradually shows itself more clearly as smoked cream and smoked honey.

Palate: Medium-bodied, but with good depth and concentration through the middle. It opens with a clear apple-led profile that turns quickly into Calvados-like notes, with tart apple tones sitting alongside grilled pear. Creamy sweetness builds along with nougat, smoked vanilla and smoked honey. A nutty, earthier layer underneath that adds structure, with pine nuts, roasted chestnut and a light forest-floor note. Tart apples character return at the edges and through the centre. The fruit remains the main theme, but it is framed by smoke and nutty earth tones.

Finish: Clean in shape but long in duration, with fruit turning brighter before it fades. It carries a lingering apple character first, then opens into tropical notes of mangosteen and guava adding a fresh, slightly tangy lift. Baking spice on the tail slowly tapers off and narrows into lots of apple chips.

My Thoughts

A direct, well-defined and intensely flavoured whisky, with the most interesting part being how the cider cask influence brings both grilled fruit and tart apple structure while still leaving space for smoke, creaminess and dry nutty notes to show.

It has a clear cider-cask identity, but it does not read as just sweet apple notes laid over malt with a distinctive progression. It carries good intensity and a strong sense of Calvados-like apple depth alongside creamy nougat, smoked vanilla and a nuttier, earthier base of pine nuts, roasted chestnut and forest floor. The smoke is present throughout, but it acts more as an overlay and binder than a dominant flavour, and it integrates well with the fruit-forward core exactly because the tart apple and dry earthy notes keep the sweeter elements in check.

Whisky Review: Chichibu 8 Years Old 2017 Bourbon Barrel,64.3% ABV

Single Cask #7492, First Fill Bourbon Barrel, Limited Edition of 171 bottles

Tasting Notes

Appearance: Yellow gold.

Nose: Deep, concentrated and clearly fruit-forward, with a strong bourbon-cask sweetness wrapped around a clean malt core. It opens on honey and a deep maltiness, then quickly shows crisp apples and a broader orchard-fruit profile. A floral-fruity lift comes through from muscat and orange blossom, with citrus peel adding a sharper edge. Banana and caramelised pineapple by mid-register, giving the fruit profile a riper, slightly cooked dimension alongside some apple tones. There is a gristy malt note running through it, along with some marzipan, honey and a light waxy note underneath.

Palate: Very expressive and layered, with a coating texture and a bright, fruit-led shape from start to finish. It opens on deep honey, vanilla and cream. Deep orchard fruits are the main theme here through the mid-palate. Some caramel, a light biscuity note, warm baking spices around the edges. What stands out most is how bright the palate stays despite the density, with the fruit, malt and vanilla notes remaining clear and defined.

Finish: Medium-long and smooth, sweetness tapering into a more mineral and lightly savoury close. Lightly salted caramel and honey shift into maltiness with a faint mineral slate and wet stone edge. Some custard cream comes through in the later stages followed by light stone fruits. Closes on a clean mix of malt, honey and mineral tones.

My Thoughts

This is the most complete and generous expression of first-fill bourbon cask influence in the set for me, because it shows sweetness, fruit, malt and texture in a very balanced and integrated way without letting any one element dominate.

It is especially strong on deep orchard fruit, honey and malt, with good detail from muscat, orange blossom, citrus peel, caramelised pineapple, marzipan and a light waxiness. It also feels precise, high in flavour intensity and very coherent, with the most notable feature being how much orchard-fruit depth it carries while still retaining clean gristy malt and a mineral close. Of the four bottles in this set, this is my favourite!

Whisky Review: Chichibu 10 Year Old 2014 Sherry Cask Finish, 62.3% ABV

Single Cask #10416, Oloroso Sherry Cask Finish, Limited edition of 246 bottles

Tasting Notes

Appearance: Light Cognac.

Nose: Mature, composed and clearly sherry-led. It opens on rich red fruits and dates, then quickly develops into marmalade with a touch of citrus rind. There is a nutty, lightly tannic dryness underneath, especially walnut skin. A slightly syrupy weight sits through the middle balanced by wet stone. There’s also a dry rancio character running alongside richer fruit and syrup notes, sitting well with the fruit. In the background, some incense and sandalwood adding dry aromatic woodiness.

Palate: Rich, weighty and coating with a firm tannic frame. Opens with honey up front, tannins holding the palate together. Some aromatic cigar box woodiness alongside bittersweet chocolate. Light incense running through the palate while agarwood brings a darker, resinous tone.

Finish: Long, dry and aromatic, wood and resin notes carrying the profile more so than sweetness. Agarwood and incense, some dried fig and an anise-like herbal depth adding a cool, slightly bitter-spiced note to the tail. As it fades it becomes lighter and more powdery, ending on a clean, soft linen-like note.

My Thoughts

A mature and composed sherry-finished Chichibu, with the cask influence showing more in structure, tannin and aromatic wood than in overt sweetness.

You’ll find good balance of rich red fruits, dates and marmalade against walnut skin dryness, rancio and wet stone, with incense and sandalwood giving it a settled, mature profile. The texture stays broad and coating, but the tannins keep it controlled and composed throughout.

Overall, this shows a rather interesting face of Chichibu that sits closer to a drier, walnut-and-cigar-box end of sherried Scotch, perhaps Glendronach or European-oak-driven Macallans.

@CharsiuCharlie