About a year and a half ago, I posted on a couple of single malts from Suntory out of Japan. (Read it here.) The surprising thing was not just that Japan was entering the traditionally western realm of high-level single malts, but that they were kicking ass doing it.

Even hardcore single malt fans became believers. When I broke out the sample bottle they gave me to try during a barbecue so my buddies could give it a quick taste and, while I was manning the grill, they drained the whole bottle. In 15 minutes. (True, I can't leave my boys around an open bottle of anything, but still...)

And the master distillers over at Suntory are at it again. They've introduced a limited edition Yamazaki 1984, a single malt commemorating 25 years of premium whisky making. Only 300 individually-numbered bottles of this precious liquid originally distilled in 1984 were released in the US. Aged in Japanese mizunara casks (as well as Spanish and American casks), it's got a distinctive, rich cinnamon-like flavor with intense vanilla. It also has a rich price tag... expect to shell out close to $600 to be one of the 300 that take this bottle home.

If you can't come up with that much coin for a single malt, you can spend a tenth of that and still get stellar taste.

Just a few months ago, Hibiki 12 Year Old became available in the US for the first time. And if you've got your movie trivia down, you know it's the brand Bill Murray was fronting for in the movie Lost in Translation.

A blend of over 30 handcrafted whiskies, including a vintage whisky aged more than 30 years, it's aged in Umeshu casks, special casks that have been used in the long-term aging of Japanese plum liqueur. Which gives it its distinct flavors of plums, raspberries and pineapples, followed by sweet honey and vanilla.

And in case you're not a blended whisky guy, Hibiki has won nearly a dozen international awards, including World's Best Blended Whisky at the World Whisky Awards. Twice.

First cars, then computers, now this.

Yamazaki 1984 - $599.99
Hibiki - $55-$60
www.yamazakiusa.com