I was lucky enough to to be able to attend this talk and tasting hosted by Dr Koichi Inatomi , a senior advisor for Suntory.
We covered the history of Suntory from building Yamazki Distillery in 1923 -it's first manager Masataka Taketsura was an apprentice at Hazelburn in Campbeltown- to a tasting of some of the modern expressions.
The presentation was very informative but still with a relaxed atmosphere that helped us all get a real feel for Japanese whisky.
What we tasted.....
Yamazaki-12 year-old, 43%abv: A light, soft malt that has a very Speyside freshness to it. It is drenched in tropical fruits and pineapples.
Hakushu-12 year-old, 43%abv: Still very fruity but more pronuced than the first whisky, this time the main fruits were more plums and raisons. On the palate more of the same fruit but with a very smokey edge - lovely. 
Yamazaki-18 year-old, 43%abv: Not as quick to jump out the glass but a wonderfull well integrated malt. Lovely richness of raisins, cherries, coffee and chocolate. A sweet styled malt but worht it.
Hakushu Peated, 48%abv: Peated up to 25 p.p.m. for that Islay-styled whisky. I thought it was like a more fruit driven version of Laphroaig but with red currants and a dash of lime.
A huge thank you goes out to University of Glasgow's School of Education for putting this event on - Many Thanks.
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