WhiskyFair TAKAO Debrief – Day One

Geek Choc buying whisky samples at Omar Distillery Booth
A little background about WhiskyFair TAKAO
What we think about the Event
Whisky Transaction at WhiskyFair TAKAO
WhiskyFair TAKAO (Day One)
- Asian Palate Association
- Omar Distillery
Asian Palate Association
- Glendronach 2004 Single Cask
- Glenfarclas 2001 Single Cask
- Gao Liang Jiu 2007
Omar Distillery – Taiwan
- The beautiful packaging of Omar Lychee Whisky
- Omar Lychee Whisky

Omar Peated Cask Strength
The peat is aromatic and the bourbon cask influence that it was in enhanced the floral and fruitiness of the whisky. We will be doing a post or two on Omar, so we will not dwell too much here. 🙂
Swiss Alpine Whisky
After the first two booths, we went straight to whisky heaven. There were just too many to try, and we had to keep up with all the exhibitors looking to pour their whiskies into our Glencairn glasses. Walking deep into the middle of the fair, we found something that we had not try for years – Swiss Whisky!
Santis Malt
If you have not heard about Santis Malt, it is time you try them! We first tasted Santis Malt back in 2010, when we travelled to Switzerland and found a bottle in a tiny supermarket in Interlaken. We were not impressed back then, but we ought to say that the whisky has improved a lot! Santis Malt is matured in old beer casks and usually have a unique finish. To preserve our livers, we tried their most sought-after winter edition – Snow White and another bottle from The Whisky Agency only.
- Santis Malt – Snow White No. 5
- Santis Malt TWA – Sherry Cask
Snow White No. 5 is the latest edition in their winter release. Slated for their 2017 release, the bottles are going to be available in Taiwan only sometime in late January or even February. It is matured in old beer casks and then finished in APRICOT liquor casks! Woot! It was one of the most amazing whiskies we had ever tasted. The apricot aroma engulfed the nose and followed through on the palate and the finish. Wow…it was simply amazing! It was too bad that they were not selling it at the fair.
The Santis Malt from The Whisky Agency was another exciting bottle. Matured in a sherry cask, it had a different character when compared to the standard Santis Malt. Again, the bottle was sold out so we couldn’t bring it home. Nonetheless, it was a fantastic journey with Santis Malt, and we got to admit that they have improved tremendously since the last time we had it in Switzerland.
Rare Whiskies from Japan
- Port Ellen 28 Years Old – Japan Only
- Karuizawa 1991 21 Years Old by Dave Broom
- Springbank 18 Years Old – Bar Caruso
Since it was our first time tasting Karuizawa, we had to document that sweet moment with a photo!

Geek Flora and Geek Choc with our Karuizawa sample
Taiwan Independent Bottlers
We did not forget the independent bottlers from Taiwan of course. They are the main reasons why WhiskyFair TAKAO could take off. We visited Spirits Salon and Aqua Vitae amongst others. By this time, we were ready to surrender to our alcohol intake, so we took out our trusty sample bottles and bought some samples to bring home instead.
- Aqua Vitae – Blair Athol 1996
- Glenfarclas 1979 The Family Cask
- Sansibar Springbank 22 Years Old
- Port Ellen Silver Seal 24 Years Old
Drunken Master Whisky Bar / Independent Bottler
- Bowmore 25 Years Old
- Caol Ila 10 Years Old
- Littlemill 1988
Besides these bottles, we also bought samples of Drunken Master’s other bottles. Some of you might have seen the first two bottles below. The other two are not yet released as they are bottles for Formosa Whisky Society. We will post our reviews of these bottles once we have tasted them.
- Glenrothes 19 Years Old – 53.6%
- Glenrothes 19 Years Old – 51%
- Formosa Whisky Society – Bunnahabhain 1989
- Formosa Whisky Society – Tennessee 2003
End of Day One
It was a fruitful day at WhiskyFair TAKAO Day One! It was a roller coaster journey as we walked through the exhibition hall. We will continue with Day Two in another post for this is already getting too long. Click here for the next one and thank you for reading all the way here!