5 Interesting Facts about Japanese Whisky:
- The Japanese whisky industry is credited to two men, one of whom went to Scotland to learn how to make whisky!
- Japanese Whiskies have won many international awards: Yamazaki Single Malt Sherry Cask 2013 was awarded the title of World Whisky of the Year by Jim Murray in 2015.
- There are 9 active whisky distilleries in Japan
- Japanese single malts are considered to be similar in style to Scotch whiskies.
- Japanese whisky is dominated by two companies whom own 5 of the 9 distilleries between them.
Whisky has been made in Japan on a commercial level since 1924, but it is believed that illegal distillation began in the mid to late 1800s. In this article I will introduce the active Japanese distilleries and their classic expressions. Following that I will introduce you to the Titans of Japanese Whisky, the founding fathers of Suntory and Nikka, the two largst distilling companies in Japan.
The Distilleries:
Yamazaki Distillery
The first Japanese commercial distillery, founded in 1923, by Shinjoro Torii and owned by Suntory.
Classic example: The Yamazaki 12 yr old single malt is exceptional.
Yoichi Distillery
Founded in 1934 by Masataka Taketsura, owned by Nikka, this is the second oldest distillery in Japan. Interstingly the distillery initially sold fruit juice cider whiles the first batches of whisky matured. The area of Hokkaido where the Yoichi Distillery is located is recognised as being a very similar environment to that of the coastal highlands of Scotland.
Classic example: Nikka From the Barrel. Technically a blend from both the Yoichi and Miyagikyo distilleries, this is classic Nikka blended whisky and is far superior to many blends produced in Ireland and Scotland in this price range.
Hakushu Distillery
Founded by Suntory in 1973, built in the “Japanese Alps” about 50 miles west of Tokyo. It is the highest distillery in the world, 2,300 feet above sea level.
Classic Example: SUNTORY HAKUSHU DISTILLER'S RESERVE
Fuji Gotemba Distillery
Built at the foot of Mount Fuji, over 2000 feet above sea level. The Fuji Gotemba Distillery produces single malts and grain whiskies.
Classic Example: KIRIN FUJI SANROKU 18 YEAR OLD
Miyagikyo Distillery
Founded in 1969 and owned by the Nikka Distilling Company. Miyagikyo produces single malts but also contains two Coffey Stills which are used to produce a lot of the grain whisky which Nikka uses in its blends
Classic example: NIKKA MIYAGIKYO SINGLE MALT 70cl / 45%
Chichibu Distillery
Japan’s newest distillery, founded in 2004 by Ichiro Akuto. Ichiro Akuto is the owner, manager and master distiller of this independant whisky distillery. Chichibu also uses relatively small copper pot stills and produces both peated and unpeated whiskies.
Classic Example: CHICHIBU ON THE WAY, ICHIRO’S MALT.
Shinshu Distillery
Founded in 1985, success proved elusive and Shinshu ceased production in 1992, only to reopen in 2011.
Chita Distillery
The Chita Distillery is a grain whisky distillery owned by Suntory. This grain whisky will be in many of Suntory’s blends such as Hibiki.
White Oak Distillery
White Oak only uses its stills to produce whisky 2 months of the year! During the rest of the year they are used for Saki production. Technically speaking it is an older distillery than Yamazaki but only produced whiksy regularly since the mid 1980’s. Also technically speaking the spirit produced is not whisky as it is made using molasses, thus does not meet international standards to be legally classified as whisky. However White Oak have released actual whisky in limited amounts in recent years
Classic Example: AKASHI WHITE OAK RED
The distilleries are mostly owned by either the Suntory or Nikki distilling companies. These two behemoths of the Japanese whisky industry were each founded by one of the two founding fathers of Japanese Whisky, whom we shall introduce ....
Introducing Shinjiro Torii & Masataka Taketsuru: Titans of Japanese Whisky!
The Japanese whisky industry as we know it today takes its roots in the 1920’s, in the minds of these two great pioneers....let me introduce you to Shinjiro Torii and Masataka Taketsuru.
Shinjiro Torii
Initially a wholesaler by trade, working in the Japanese pharmacy industry, Torii used his skills to start importing alcohol to Japan. He had a love for Scotch and was so passionalte about whisky that he decided to make Japanese whisky for Japanese people. Torii founded the Ymazaki Distillery in 1923, the very first commercial whisky distillery on Japanese soil, under his company name Kotobukiya, which was later renamed Suntory.
The Yamazaki distillery is located on the outskirts of Kyoto, about 200 miles west of Tokyo. Kyoto is renouned for its high water quality, which is obviously important for making good whisky!
Torii was the first master blender at Yamazaki, he produced his frist whisky in 1929 – Shirofuda, then in 1937 after over 10 years of building up a maturing stock of barrels: - he released Japan’s first single malt... Kakubin.
Suntory also hold the honour of producing Japan’s first single malt, Yamazaki 12 yr old in 1984.
Masataka Taketsuru
Taketsuru was from a family of wine makers, whom had been producing Sake since 1933. He studied organic chemistry in the University of Glasgow after the Great War, then as a result of his love of Scotch, he signed up for an apprenticeship at the Longmorn Distillery in 1919. He later moved to the Bo’ness Distillery, before commencing work at the Hazelburn Distillery in Campeltown. Interstingly – Taketsuru spent time as an apprentice in 3 different distilleries. A Speyside, a Lowland and a Campbeltown, so he would have learnt different styles of scotch. Was this an accident or was it a calculated education?!
He married a Scottish girl in 1920 and later that same year moved back to Japan with his bride. Taketsura then began working at the Kotobukiya company under none other than Shinjiro Torii! Taketsuru was instrumental in setting up and estalishing the Yamazaki Distillery. Interestingly Taketsuru had wanted to build the distillery in Hokkaido on the northern island of Japan, because he flet that the geography was very close to that of Scotland. However he was out voted by the executives at Kotobukiya who felt that the area of Kyoto had better access to urban markets.
Taketsura did not abandon his dream of a distillery in northern Japan, in 1934 he left Kotobujiya and founded the Dai Nippon Kaju K.K., distilling company in Yoichi on the northern Japanese island of Hokkaido. This company was later renamed Nikka by Taketsura.
If Torii is the original founder of Japanese Whisky business, Taketsura is the man who taught him all about whisky making, learnt first hand in Scotland. With hindsight it would seem that Torii learned a great deal about whisky making from Taketsura. On the other hand it would appear that Taketsura learned a great deal about business from Torii, enabling him to go out on his own and found his own distillery.
Whatever the truth, we have two titans of Japanese Whisky whom both made it possible, we credit them with the delights that we know today!