It's already the last day of 2025, so I'm writing this to record and organize all the different whiskies I drank and the experiences I had this year. 2025 was the year I drank and experienced the widest variety of whiskies in my life. I visited a lot of different bars and attended various events, so I think it was a year of diverse experiences. Anyway, to break down what happened this year: 1. Daily drinkers, 2. Purchased bottles, 3. Bars, 4. Other events.

1. Dailies Since I'm in the land of Nikka, I naturally drank Nikka the most. Usually, I'd have something meaningful for the first glass, and from the second glass onwards, I drank a lot of cheap highball whiskies just for the 'alcohol refill.'

AI Translated Image

I also drank a lot of Chu-hai, but I'm trying to cut back because I feel like I drink them too fast. One can is 100ml at 45% (wait, I mean 4.5%? No, the text says 45% 100ml... maybe a mix?), and I finish it in 30 minutes, so it's hard to control my pace. Eventually, after drinking this and that, I ended up with...

AI Translated Image

Sensei (Nikka Frontier). I didn't drink it all year; I drank Nikka Deep Blend until October. If you ask me which one I prefer between Sensei and Deep Blend, I'd still say Deep Blend. It gets a lot of hate because of the grain whiskey ratio, but I like it because of the smoky finish, just like Sensei. I've even finished a bottle in two days, or sometimes a bottle a day when it was bad, and I felt fine. But Sensei might be better if you're just looking for nuttiness since Deep Blend can be a bit greasy. Sadly, Deep Blend disappeared from my local mart after October, so I naturally moved to Sensei. I wrote a detailed review of Sogani Sensei Frontier before.

In the end, I think Nikka Deep Blend was most my style. 2. Purchased Bottles

AI Translated Image

I bought Andong Soju as a gift for the school club (Circle), and surprisingly, since it's a club full of al-jungs (alcoholics), people loved it. I thought they'd hate the yeast scent or how dry it is, but it ran out faster than I expected. It’s actually really nutty and good when you mix it into a highball. Smoky Stack—I like Smoky Scot, and this was on sale as a 'limited' edition so I tried it, but it was just 'meh.' I'd rather drink Iliac CS or Smoky Scot 10yr. Absinthe 68—I bought it because I personally love absinthe. As expected, it's delicious. Evan 12yr... I really like it and it's tasty, but even though it's a 101 proof premium bourbon, it's weird how the reviews tanked the moment it was released in Korea, even though the hype was good just weeks prior. Seeing how Wild Turkey Master's Keep BiB also gets bad reviews, I guess the ABV is the issue for some.

AI Translated Image

Among the Mu bottles on the left, the cat Tomatin—I picked this after tasting a few that day, but the neck pour condition was worse than expected, so I'm currently 'airing' it out in Korea. Banana Fish Clynelish—I haven't opened it because I'm taking it back when the semester ends, but it was a great bottle when I sampled it. Good nose, good spice. Next are Benrinnes and Aultmore Ruby Port. I really enjoyed that Benrinnes 12. I think I got it as a Mukawa clearance item for about 7,000 yen? Even for a 57.5% bourbon cask, I usually don't think 'I want to drink this every day,' but this was so good I saved about 100ml in a personal vial to share at a BYOB or give to a friend later. Then there's the Chichibu Ichiro 505. It was a COVID-era bottle, but I had the chance to meet Ichiro-san in person and get it signed. I opened and drank it during summer break. Its Whiskybase score is super low, but I think that's just because it was too expensive... I also bought it as a dumped stock bottle, but I found it delicious. It was super sweet.

AI Translated Image

Purchased bottles from Whiskey Tasting Room Gomae: Lagavulin 5cs Nakatsujin, Teaninich PX 13yr, Sponge Ben Nevis 7yr, Wolfburn CS, etc. It's the liquor shop I visit the most; they have lots of tastings and events, so I love it. Sometimes they give me various vials, and every year they do Mu and Sponge tasting events, and New Year's lucky bags. I bought the Regent at Aeon Mall without thinking because I wanted bourbon, paid 6,600 yen, but found out I overpaid... drank it while crying. Nagahama is a Maple Cask given to me by a friend who attended the Hokkaido Whiskey Festival last year.

AI Translated Image

I also bought Miyagikyo and Bruichladdich 32yr vials, and an Auchentoshan 31yr vial, which I finished back in Korea. I didn't write reviews, but while both were well-made, they felt a bit underwhelming? For such high-age whiskies, they felt too 'standard.' Auchentoshan was good, though—a total fruit basket. Lastly, I bought an Un-Orkney and Glenrothes. The Un-Orkney is going to Korea, and I'm drinking the Rothes now. Besides these, I got some wine from a Dopamine random box, and won a 100ml Clynelish 'Drops of God' from a gacha. I paid this year but will receive the Dopamine Tasting Room New Year Gacha next year; I'll probably review it next week. I haven't bought as much as I thought. Aren't I living a life of moderation? 3. Bars Being one of the top 3 entertainment districts in Japan, there are many famous bars here. Strength, Bota, Brora, and recently, Brownie. Here's my personal one-line summary: First, the top tier is Strength.

I went several times last year and this year whenever I had the chance. With 10ml pours, the advantage is you can taste a huge variety. I often wonder if it's even okay for them to serve this stuff at these prices. It's a consistently great bar without fluctuations. I'd confidently recommend it to anyone, especially tourists. To be honest, Sapporo has a lot of 'regular-only' businesses and the community is small, so you often feel the difference in treatment when you go with a regular. But I can guarantee Strength is the best bar because they are fair to everyone. Highly recommended.

Another top-tier is Bar Bota in Otaru. Actually, I like it even more than Strength.

I plan to go to Bota again once the semester ends. It's the reason Whiskey Gall-ers go to Otaru. Now I love it enough to go to Otaru just for Bota. It's the mecca of Ben Nevis and Nikka. I heard the owner was the main narrator/commentator for a Nikka documentary. He lived in Alaska, so I know he speaks some English. He loves jazz and plays a lot of American pop and jazz. It doesn't matter much on weekdays, but you generally need to reserve via Twitter. On New Year's or during major events, they open expensive bottles or share things; last year I got to drink a 70s 'From the Barrel.' However, the owner is a bit moody, and it's true that the better you get to know him, the better the service. These two bars are my favorites; if you're coming to Sapporo, you must go.

Mizunara

The bar I visited the second most this year. I recommend stopping by at least once to enjoy Japanese whiskies. Usually, you need about 10,000 yen to be satisfied at Strength, Bota, or Brownie, but at Mizunara, 5,000 yen is enough to drink good stuff. Half pours are around 1,000 yen for Asaka, Komagatake, Kanosuke, Ryuka, Shindo, etc. It's great to enjoy hyped J-whiskies for cheap before the price goes up. If you like Japanese whisky, definitely go.

AI Translated Image

Brownie

AI Translated Image

AI Translated Image

A very expensive place with a 1.5k cover charge. Usually, you end up spending over 10,000 yen for about 4 half-pours, so it hurts. The advantage is they get the latest Japanese indie bottlings talked about on Whiskey Gall—like Shinnanoya Orkney, Huffkap Dam, Japonism Storas Islay, etc. I recommend checking their Insta or Twitter to decide what to drink before going. It is expensive, though...

Haruya

AI Translated Image

A bar I went to on a friend's recommendation. Honestly, the recommendation level is very high, and it's great for drinking plenty for around 10,000 yen. Aside from the accessibility, it's a bar that rivals Strength. They have many old bottles and a lot of Bruichladdich distillery bottles. The service was great; they gave me Black Art 8.1, which was my first Black Art experience, and things like the recent Octomore Fest bottle or 11yr CS. It seems like a peat-focused shop, and the bar's own indie bottle is a Caol Ila. It's a bit on the outskirts, 1-2 stops from Sapporo Station, so if you like Peat or Bruichladdich, I recommend a visit.

4. Other Events Actually, before talking about other events, I have to mention the place I went to most... it's technically a bar, but it's the club space for our Circle: Bar Cafe and Lamp. Our university clubroom. It was started by a student, and the staff and customers are all students, grad students, professors, alumni, etc. It's not an official club, so there are students from nearby universities too. Usually, it's a cocktail bar with 2-hour all-you-can-drink for 2,000 yen. When I'm bored, I go and ask for creative cocktails, run experiments, or help out if they're busy.

AI Translated Image

Once a month, the whiskey club within this group works almost like a BYOB. Every month we set a theme (Bourbon, Highball, Peat, Irish, Sherry, Island whiskies like Orkney, Jura, Arran) and everyone chips in 2,000 yen to drink together. There are about 3 experts, 3 intermediate drinkers, and 4 newbies. Sometimes when someone buys a cool bottle, they bring it to share or donate it. I met a university alum who worked at Akkeshi for 10 years and is now establishing the 'Whisky Student' distillery in Tokachi. It was great to talk to him about distillery design and casks. An Ardbeg employee even stopped by once and dropped off some Ardbeg spirit.

AI Translated Image

It's a place that satisfies me when I just want to drink entries. Since it's basically all-you-can-drink for 2,000 yen. This club activity led to...