SCOTLAND might have beaten Japan in the early stages of the Rugby World Cup but may have to concede defeat in something a bit closer to home: whisky.

In a recent blind tasting, Scotland’s finest dram was comprehensively beaten by a 20-year-old Nikka Yoichi, distilled in Hokkaido, Japan.

The test pitted Lagavulin 16-year-old, Cragganmore 12-year-old and TheBalvenie 12-year-old against three single malts from the Nikka Whisky Distilling company in northern Japan, aged ten years, 12 years and 20 years respectively.

Ken Noma, president of the Toronto Saki Society which hosted the tasting in Toronto, Canada, said the outcome has caused a bit of stir across the Atlantic, especially in the US.

“We organised the tasting more out of curiosity than anything else, but we found that the Speyside malts really struggled against the Nikka.”

Judges awarded each whisky in the competition scores out of ten on several categories including colour, bouquet, taste, aftertaste and overall impression.

Mr Noma added: “We found the 20-year-old Nikka had a strong peaty aftertaste, but quite a lot of forward plummy fruit on the nose.”

Whisky expert Mark Davidson, who runs Edinburgh’s Cadenhead whisky shop, said he wasn’t surprised by the result. “Japan have their own water, their own peat sources and some very good technology. I have tasted some Japanese whisky which is just as good as single malt Scotch whisky.

“But I don’t think Scotland has anything to worry about, as whereas we have more than 120 malts alone, without including various vintages, Japan has only a handful.”

The origins of Japanese whisky date back to the 1920s.