Don't Skip Ordering These 14 Japanese Whisky Cocktails When Given The Chance

You should stop sleeping on Japanese whisky, people. Although you might think of Japanese alcohol as sake and shochu, arguably the two most well-known alcoholic beverages originating from the country, Japan has slowly but surely been cultivating an impressive whisky industry. Whisky production in Japan started in the early 1920s, with notable brands Suntory and Nikka starting their journeys as single distilleries on the islands of Honshu and Hokkaido. Pretty soon, more and more whisky manufacturers started to create their own products, and today the country's whisky is known for its high-quality, elegant flavor, and ability to be mixed into some standout cocktails.

There are likely more Japanese whisky-based cocktails than you previously thought. Sure, there are spins on classic cocktails like the old fashioned and the whiskey sour — but the world of Japanese whisky cocktails is so much richer than that. Whether you're in the market for something fruity and rich, or something that balances whisky's oaky notes with sourness and acidity, there's something for everyone. So grab your favorite whisky and a cocktail shaker, and let's get started.

Whisky's complex, aromatic profile means that it goes well with a lot of different flavor notes — and fruity notes shine especially brightly with this liquor. That's what makes the Toki Americano so special. This cocktail is a mash-up of Japanese and Italian influences. The key liquor here is Suntory Toki Whisky, which creates a sweet, spicy base note for the other flavors to be layered on top. Then, Cocchi Americano and Amaro Nonino are mixed in, to further amp up the fruity fragrances in the drink.

Although you might expect Cocchi Americano to taste like coffee (what with it being called americano and all), that isn't quite the case. Instead, it's a fortified wine with strong notes of orange and elderflower, as well as papaya, mango, and pineapple, and a punchy bitterness that pulls back the potential sweetness of the drink. Amaro Nonino, meanwhile, is also strong on orange and mango flavors, but it has herbal notes of thyme and mint that add a lot of complexity. The whole thing is topped off with a dash of grapefruit bitters, adding a pleasing sourness to the drink. Serve chilled without additional ice, to allow the flavors to remain extra punchy.

Okay, so a cocktail known as a nail in the coffin probably isn't going to win a lot of fans, what with its connotation of death and all — but wait until you see how good it tastes before you judge. This cocktail may be based on Japanese whisky, but it was invented by San Francisco-based bartender Brian Means at the bar Dirty Habit. The nail in the coffin is akin to the rusty nail cocktail, but rather than using scotch and Drambuie, Japanese whisky and Licor 43 are the key ingredients.

The nail in the coffin calls for a 12-year Yamazaki whisky, which delivers a huge amount of smoky, oaky flavor and a delightful complexity. Licor 43 provides a spicy, herby, vanilla-tinged note, with a citrus twist and a sweetness that mellows the whole thing out. Madeira wine gives the cocktail a sugary, somewhat toasty flavor, and a splash of Fernet-Branca gives the nail in the coffin a bitterness. There are a lot of tasting notes going on here, but none of them are particularly deadly — so don't be scared to enjoy your nail in the coffin; it won't be your last cocktail, trust us.

It's pretty bold for a Japanese whisky cocktail to call itself Nippon. It's the Japanese word for Japan itself after all, so how can a drink fully encompass the country in one single glass? Well, if we're being honest, it kinda doesn't — but it does make for a pretty delicious drink.

The Nippon cocktail uses a blended Japanese whisky as its base liquor. As there are plenty of types out there, the type your bartender chooses can affect the final flavor of your drink, but you can guarantee that it will gain a smooth, slightly smoky, almost floral note from the offset. Strucchi Rosso Vermouth comes next, adding to that sense of smokiness and also adding an almost peppery undertone to the drink. Then, the crowning glory of the whole thing: Ginger liqueur. There's only a small amount in this drink, but it gives the Nippon a big boost. You get that bright, sharp, spicy ginger flavor threading through the cocktail, adding a freshness to the whole thing and stopping it from tasting too heavy.

If you've tried only one whiskey cocktail in your life, it's fairly likely that it was an old fashioned. This is one of the best-known ones out there, after all, and there's a reason for that: It's reliably tasty, it's not super difficult to make a good version (although it takes a lot of skill to make an excellent one), and its ingredients are fairly available. 

So if old fashioneds are such a winner, what's the point of having the Japanese version? Well, simply, it's really very tasty. The Japanese old fashioned can be made with bourbon, but Japanese whisky gives it a delightful lightness and complexity from the off. This cocktail is ginger-forward, providing a lot of spice, and the Angostura bitters give it a twist of pepperiness and herbal notes. 

The reason this cocktail is worth ordering instead of making at home is because of its star ingredient: Kuru sato. This unrefined black sugar has a deep, caramelized, almost smoky sweetness that provides way more depth than a simple syrup or honey. This molasses-like note gives the Japanese old fashioned a lot more heft than the original version, and fills out some of the smokiness that the Japanese whisky might lack.

The black ship is a cocktail with a name alluding to Japan's history, and an event that would cause shockwaves for the island nation. Back in 1853, U.S. Navy Commodore Matthew Perry sailed a fleet of ships to Japan, docking in Uraga. His ships, with plumes of black smoke rising from them, became a tourist attraction — but they also signaled an end to Japan's relative isolation as a nation, and heralded the encroaching role of Western influence on the country. We're willing to bet that the cocktail that bears its name didn't appear until much later (Japanese whisky wasn't invented until decades after), but we can see how its ingredients call back to the event.

A black ship starts with Japanese whisky, with pomegranate juice added to sweeten things up. Then comes a dash of port, which both alludes to the naval influence of the cocktail, and to the Portuguese influence in the country that preceded the arrival of the black ships themselves (and, of course, to the Western world knocking on Japan's door). The drink is then made slightly more tart with lemon juice, cutting through the dense ingredients. The color of this drink, dusky and dark, also alludes to its name.

If you like your cocktails spicy, sweet, and ever so slightly smoky, you won't regret ordering the red akuma. The word akuma means "devil" in Japanese, and we can see why this drink gained this in its name. There's something delightfully devilish in the inclusion of chili syrup, which creates a lot of spice and heat in the drink, while simultaneously sweetening it up. This chili note also cuts through the boozy, intense flavor of the whisky and plays well with its floral flavors.

This cocktail is then amped up with a touch of blood orange juice, which adds both a mature sweetness and a sourness to the drink. An extra dash of sweet agave syrup gives a subtle hint of smokiness that ties into the whisky's oaky tones. As for the "red" part of its name, that's provided by the blood orange juice itself, which dyes the drink a gorgeously vibrant color and makes it stand out when sitting on a bar. It's a cocktail that's great for sipping on when you need a bit of warming up, but a lot of sweetness to go with it.

A lot of whisky cocktails take the smokiness of whisky and use it as a contrast for lighter, fresher flavors. The Japanese whisky smash does just that, but with a whisky that's lighter and more delicate on the palette, making this a beverage that doesn't ask too much of its drinker. One of the bonuses of ordering this cocktail, too, is that it doesn't require a huge amount of complicated ingredients, so even slightly less-equipped bars should be able to make it easily.

The Japanese whisky smash starts, as all Japanese whisky cocktails do, with a good whisky. As it's the only alcohol in the drink, using the best one available is essential, so don't be scared to ask for the good stuff here. This cocktail is then mixed with a significant amount of simple syrup and a sugar cube, as well as a muddled mixture of mint leaves, lemon quarters, and a little bit more sugar. It's served over a lot of ice, with lemon peel and mint as a garnish. This is a cocktail that's bold, fruity, sharp, and sweet, and one that even folks who don't like whisky will appreciate.

The classic sidecar isn't for everyone. While this cocktail is a classic for a reason, a lot of people just don't love the taste of Cognac, with the liquor being slightly overpowering for some. If that sounds like you, we'd recommend you try the Tokyo sidecar instead. Named after Japan's capital city, this cocktail has a slightly fruitier, lighter taste without the intense booziness of the traditional drink.

In a Tokyo sidecar, Cognac is swapped for Japanese whisky, with the spiciness and vanilla of the former liquor replaced with the fruity, floral notes of the latter. Cointreau is added for a full-bodied orange flavor and a touch of bitterness, filling out the flavor of the whisky incredibly well. Then, the secret ingredient is yuzu juice. Taking the place of lemon juice in the classic Sidecar, yuzu juice (which comes from yuzu, a citrus fruit found widely in Japan) gives this drink more of a robust sharpness, with fragrant notes of grapefruit, orange, and lemon shining through. The yuzu provides a unique flavor that plays well with the Japanese whisky, and gives this cocktail a little edge that makes it stand out. If you spot it on the menu, don't miss the opportunity to try this drink.

We love a cocktail that has a grand, romantic name, and the long look back has just that. Its name suggests bittersweet partings, and that's mirrored by the cocktail's flavors. This drink starts with a Rittenhouse straight rye whiskey, which is cut with a Japanese blended whisky, giving it a smokiness and intensity that it would otherwise lack. It's then mixed with Amaro Braulio, a bitter, intense Italian liqueur, sweetened up with brown sugar syrup, and given a final herbal bite by Angostura bitters. This interplay of flavors gives this cocktail a huge amount of dynamism, and just a little bit of wistfulness.

As cocktails go, the long look back is a baby. This drink was invented by bartender Kacie Lambert at the end of the 2010s, and has quickly become a modern classic. It's worth pointing out, though, that the long look back isn't for the fainthearted: In its pure form, it can be almost overwhelming. That's why it's typically served over ice, with the gentle melting helping to dilute the drink and smooth out its flavors.

If you're looking for a Japanese whisky cocktail that requires a grand total of two ingredients, you'll love the highball mizuwari. This cocktail is a version of a Japanese highball, a very popular cocktail in Japan; a drink that looks simple to make, but actually requires a high degree of skill, despite being a mixture of just whisky and sparkling water. "The hallmark is super careful preparation," says bartender Mikey Barton, bartender at Dram & Grain in Washington, D.C., over at Liquor.com. "Chilling the glasses, stirring X number of times, all this thought and preparation that goes into an individual drink." The ice has to be just right, the ingredients have to be chosen with purpose and intention, and it has to be served at a precise temperature. Otherwise, the flavors of the whisky, which are pretty delicate, just don't shine properly.

Sounds a little intense, right? That's why you should leave the highball mizuwari to the pros. The hallmark of this whisky and sparkling water cocktail is that it has to be stirred exactly 13.5 times during its first mix. After being topped with ice, it's then mixed three and a half times more. Although this may sound a bit too exacting, the ritual of it all is part of the fun.

The whiskey sour is a tried and tested favorite around the world, and its fairly basic flavor profile gives bartenders a lot of room to play. It was in this space that the Japanese sour was born. The Japanese sour is based around Nikka Coffey Grain Whisky, an incredibly aromatic drink that bursts with notes of mango, coconut, toffee, and vanilla. The lemon juice that goes into the cocktail is cut with yuzu juice, which provides both a strong fruitiness and an elegant, bright aroma to the drink.

The most distinctive ingredient here is arguably kuromitsu. Also known as "black honey," kuromitsu is made from black sugar, and gives the drink a deep, smoky, caramel note. It also fills out the whisky's fruitier notes without diminishing them. Once the ingredients are shaken with the egg white, giving them an impressive froth, the whole thing is topped with bitters for extra color and a hit of sour flavor. As this can be a challenging cocktail to get right at home, it's best left to the professionals — especially when specialty ingredients are involved.

We wouldn't blame you for feeling a bit intimidated by a cocktail called the beast. The good news, though, is that when it comes to this drink, its bark is definitely worse than its bite. The beast is a cocktail composed of just a few ingredients, with the primary one being Japanese whisky. On top of that goes a hefty dash of smoky syrup. This syrup is made by combining a simple syrup with liquid smoke, and it has a lot of punch to it. Here, it helps to fill in the slightly more delicate flavor of Japanese whisky without completely overpowering it.

The drink is then reinforced with a few dashes of cacao bitters. These bitters add a rich, nutty aroma and flavor to the cocktail, while also providing it with that all-important balance and spiciness that creates further complexity. Because the individual ingredients here are quite strong, it's best that this drink is served over ice, so that its melting can slowly dilute the mixture and take some of the intensity out of it. One of the best things about this cocktail, too, is it's pretty easy to make at home if you have all of the ingredients.

One of our favorite things about Japanese whisky cocktails is that a simple liquor swap can create so much more flavor. Take the Toki julep, for example. This cocktail is, quite clearly, a spin on a mint julep, which opts for Toki blended Japanese whisky instead of the traditional bourbon that goes into the drink. This swap, though, plays into the other flavors of the mint julep much more effectively. Toki whisky has notes of green apple, basil, peppermint, thyme, and grapefruit, and is altogether far brighter and lighter than bourbon. This lightness pairs excellently with the mint in the drink, with the peppermint note in the whisky creating a real synergy.

The sugar in the Toki julep also gives these flavor notes a lift, allowing them to stand out way more effectively. This cocktail is finished off with a slice of grapefruit, which again ties into the Toki's flavor and provides a lovely bitterness that offsets any overt sweet tastes. If you find mint juleps a little too smoky and heavy for your taste, this one's definitely worth a try.

When you hear the words Tokyo drift, you probably think of the classic 2006 entry to the "Fast & Furious" movie franchise. No? Just us? Well, apparently so — some folks think of cocktails. This Japanese whisky cocktail couldn't be further from those intense, over-the-top movies. Instead, it's a sophisticated affair that places Japanese blended whisky front and center, reinforcing and balancing its flavor with vermouth, light vermouth amaro, and a dash of Strega.

The Strega here gives the cocktail a touch of sweetness, but really amps up its herbal and aromatic notes, with hints of mint, fennel, anise, and saffron. The light vermouth amaro perks the drink up even further, adding herbaceous notes and a little spice, while the rosso vermouth gives the cocktail a fruitiness. The Tokyo drift is served without ice, which can make it pretty powerful, but it's a delightfully sippable drink that sings with sophistication. The lemon twist it's served with makes all the difference, giving it a final touch of citrus that pleases the nose and the tastebuds.