The Yamazaki Smoky Batch The Fourth Single Malt Japanese Whisky
The Yamazaki Smoky Batch The Fourth Single Malt Japanese Whisky
The Yamazaki Smoky Batch The Fourth Single Malt Japanese Whisky
The Yamazaki Smoky Batch The Fourth Single Malt Japanese Whisky
The Yamazaki Smoky Batch The Fourth Single Malt Japanese Whisky
The Yamazaki Smoky Batch The Fourth Single Malt Japanese Whisky
The Yamazaki Smoky Batch The Fourth Single Malt Japanese Whisky
The Yamazaki Smoky Batch The Fourth Single Malt Japanese Whisky
The Yamazaki Smoky Batch The Fourth Single Malt Japanese Whisky
The Yamazaki Smoky Batch The Fourth Single Malt Japanese Whisky
The Yamazaki Smoky Batch The Fourth Single Malt Japanese Whisky
The Yamazaki Smoky Batch The Fourth Single Malt Japanese Whisky
The Yamazaki Smoky Batch The Fourth Single Malt Japanese Whisky
The Yamazaki Smoky Batch The Fourth Single Malt Japanese Whisky
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Regular price $449.95
Regular price Sale price $449.95
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Age: NAS (No Age Statement) | Region: Shimamoto, Osaka, Japan | Proof: 86.0
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Midnight Whiskey · The Vault Single Malt Japanese Whisky · Duty-Free Exclusive

Yamazaki Distillery

Smoky Batch

The Fourth

Sumi-Black Echizen Washi Livery · 43% ABV (86 Proof) · Duty-Free Exclusive

43.0%
ABV
86
Proof
NAS
Age Statement
700 mL
Format
Peated Malt
Blend Premise
Shimamoto, Osaka
Distillery Origin

Smoky Batch is the series in which Yamazaki inverts its own recipe. The smoky malt that normally contributes only a trace to the distillery’s single malt — a small proportion that lends depth and complexity — is here the entire blend, composed solely of smoky malt distilled at Yamazaki. The Fourth continues that run at 43% ABV (86 proof) in a 700 mL bottle, sold through duty-free rather than domestic retail, in the series’ sumi-black livery. Its own release date, price and tasting notes have not been published, and this page does not supply them.

Nº 01

The Elemental Distinction

01

The distillery’s own recipe, inverted. Suntory describes the smoky component as a malt used in very small quantities to give Yamazaki depth and complexity; the Smoky Batch series is built from that component alone.

02

All of it distilled at Yamazaki — the series blends only smoky malt made at the distillery itself, rather than sourcing peated whisky in.

03

The producer’s stated aim is a gentle, distinctly Japanese smokiness rather than an Islay-style assault.

04

Duty-free exclusive. The series is sold through airport duty-free in restricted quantity rather than on the Japanese domestic market — a verified channel fact for this series, not a rumour.

05

43% ABV, 700 mL, produced by Suntory at the Yamazaki Distillery in Shimamoto, Osaka. It ships with a presentation box and a card.

06

The livery is the series’ signature: Yamazaki’s brush calligraphy on an Echizen washi label dyed in sumi black, the brand’s own colour.

Nº 02

Distillery & Series Heritage

1923 Shimamoto Foundation

Yamazaki is Japan’s oldest malt whisky distillery, founded in 1923 by Shinjiro Torii at the confluence of three rivers in Shimamoto, Osaka. While standard Yamazaki single malts rely on a complex harmony of Mizunara, American oak, and Sherry casks with just a touch of peated malt, the Smoky Batch series spotlights that solitary peated malt component at full volume across consecutive, numbered airport releases.

Nº 03

Craftsmanship & Presentation

Echizen Washi Sumi Livery
Peated Component Focus

100% In-House Peated Malt

Distilled at Yamazaki using peated malted barley, capturing a delicate Japanese peat smoke profile integrated with subtle fruity ester complexity.

Label Artistry

Echizen Washi Paper

Adorned with traditional tactile Echizen washi paper dyed in deep sumi black ink, finished with golden brush calligraphy.

Channel Distribution

Travel Retail Exclusive

Released strictly through international airport duty-free shops in limited allocations, never offered for domestic Japanese retail sale.

Release Packaging

Enclosed Collector Card

Housed in a sturdy charcoal presentation carton complete with an official Suntory narrative card explaining the peated malt premise.

Nº 04

Sensory Profile & Strategy

Peated Japanese Register
I

Sensory Profile

Suntory has published no tasting note for The Fourth, and none is invented here. What the series commits to is structural rather than descriptive: a whisky made only from the smoky malt Yamazaki normally uses in fractions, aimed at a soft, Japanese register of smoke rather than a medicinal one. The notes published for The First belong to that release and are not carried across — each batch in this series is its own whisky.

II

Strategic Position

Duty-free series live in a blind spot: released without announcement, documented late and mostly in Japanese. It sits with the Spanish-oak Hakushu duty-free bottling and the centennial Hibiki of 2023, within the Japanese single malt shelf at Midnight Whiskey.

Yamazaki Distillery Still House Yamazaki Distillery Entrance and Exterior
Nº 05

Collector Note & Index

Vault Provenance
→

Sequential Series Value

The Smoky Batch releases are numbered rather than dated, which makes the ordinal the whole of a bottle’s identity — The First, The Second, The Third and this Fourth are separate objects, and a sequential run assembled in order carries high collector demand.

→

Verified Data Integrity

This page states no release date, no price and no edition size for The Fourth, because none has been published by Suntory — the ordinal number, strength (43%), and duty-free channel are what can be verified, and they are.

Evaluated strictly on verified Japanese domestic records and physical packaging inspects.

Collector IndexYAMAZAKI SMB4
Brand
The Yamazaki (Suntory)
Class
Single Malt Japanese Whisky
Series
Smoky Batch (The Fourth)
Proof / ABV
86 Proof (43.0% ABV)
Format
700 mL
Channel
Airport Duty-Free Exclusive

Explore the complete Japanese whisky collection in Midnight Whiskey's vault.

Nº 06

Technical Specifications

CLASS Single Malt Japanese Whisky
SERIES Yamazaki Smoky Batch — The Fourth
COMPOSITION Blended solely from smoky malt distilled at the Yamazaki Distillery
SERIES PREMISE The smoky component Suntory uses in very small quantities within Yamazaki, here used as the entire whisky
ABV / PROOF 43.0% ABV / 86 Proof
VOLUME 700 mL
CHANNEL Duty-free exclusive, limited quantity — not released on domestic Japanese market
PACKAGING Presentation box and card; Echizen washi label dyed sumi black, carrying Yamazaki brush calligraphy
DISTILLERY Yamazaki Distillery, Shimamoto, Osaka, Japan (Founded 1923)
RELEASE DATE Unpublished by producer
PRICE AT RELEASE Unpublished by producer
TASTING NOTES Unpublished for The Fourth; earlier batch notes belong to those specific releases
AGE STATEMENT None (NAS)
PRODUCER Suntory, Japan

† Format and packaging verified directly from physical inspects and Japanese retail records.

Nº 07

Records & Assurance

Production Methodology

Yamazaki was founded in 1923 by Shinjiro Torii as Japan’s first malt whisky distillery, and its single malt is built from a range of component whiskies of which a smoky malt is one — used, in Suntory’s own account, in very small quantities to lend depth and complexity to the whole. The Smoky Batch series takes that component and makes it the entire whisky, blending only smoky malt distilled at Yamazaki, and aims at a soft Japanese smokiness rather than a medicinal one. The Fourth continues that series at 43% ABV in 700 mL, produced by Suntory at the Yamazaki Distillery in Shimamoto, Osaka, and supplied with a presentation box and a card. The series is sold through duty-free in restricted quantity rather than on the domestic Japanese market, and its packaging carries Yamazaki’s brush calligraphy on an Echizen washi label dyed in sumi black. What Suntory has not published for this release is a launch date, a price or a tasting note, and this page states none of the three.

Authentication & Vault Preservation

Every bottle sold through Midnight Whiskey is sourced as an authentic, sealed product and inspected before it ships. Orders are packed with padded, glass-rated handling and require an adult signature (21+) on delivery; we do not ship to anyone unable to verify legal drinking age. For our full sourcing and handling protocols, see our editorial and authentication standards.

Frequently Asked Questions

What makes the Smoky Batch different from standard Yamazaki?

The proportions are inverted. Suntory describes the smoky malt as a component used in very small quantities within the Yamazaki single malt, where it lends depth and complexity. In the Smoky Batch series that component is the whole whisky — blended only from smoky malt distilled at Yamazaki itself, and aimed at a gentle, distinctly Japanese smokiness rather than a medicinal one.

Where is Yamazaki Smoky Batch sold?

Through duty-free rather than domestic retail. The series is a duty-free exclusive released in restricted quantity through airport shops, which is why it tends to surface in English-language coverage months after it appears — the earlier releases were noticed first by travellers rather than announced.

What are the tasting notes for The Fourth?

Suntory has not published any for this release, so none appear here. Notes exist for earlier releases in the series, but each Smoky Batch is its own whisky and a sibling's profile would not describe this one. The release date and price are likewise unpublished and are not stated on this page.

Midnight Whiskey · The Vault The Yamazaki · Smoky Batch The Fourth
Shipping information

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Processing Time: Most orders process within 1–8 business days. You will receive a tracking number via email as soon as your bottle ships.

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