Shizuoka city: still fueled by cedar from nearby forests, Shizuoka DistilleryLeading Japan’s new wave of independent whiskey makers, prepares its spirits to emerge global demand,
This year marks the 100th anniversary of whiskey making in Japan since market leader Suntory established its first distillery in Yamazaki in 1923.
And at the centenary mark, there are now more than 100 licensed distilleries in the country – twice as many as 10 years ago – each of which is vying to make its mark in the fast-growing market.
The cedar fire – which Shizuoka claims is the world’s only wood-burning fire beneath a whiskey still – is one of several innovations these distilleries are using to differentiate themselves.
And even though their business is small compared to beverage giants like Suntory, their ambitions are world-class.
Taiko Nakamura, 54, was inspired to set up the Shizuoka distillery by a trip to Scotland in 2016.
“I looked at this distillery and I was amazed that this little place in the hilly countryside was selling whiskey all over the world,” he said. “So I thought it would be fun to make my own whiskey and then have people all over the world enjoy it.”
Craft whiskey explosion in Japan follows boom and bust Industry,
quality over quantity
Long viewed as poor imitators of Scotch, Japanese single malt and blended whiskeys began garnering international awards around 2008, leading to intense global demand that effectively outstripped supply around 2015.
The shortage sent prices into the stratosphere. A set of 54 bottles of Ichiro Malt, a pioneer in Japanese craft whiskey, sold for $1.5 million at a Hong Kong auction in 2020. Last week, Sotheby’s unveiled what it claimed was the most valuable collection Japanese whiskey At the auction, a 52-year-old bottle made headlines, selling for 300,000 pounds ($373,830).
Major producers Suntory and Nikka, a unit of beer maker Asahi Group, have spent the past decade increasing capacity and stock of the spirit, which is required at least to qualify as “Japanese whiskey” under the 2021 standards. Must be three years of age.
Suntory, Japan’s largest and best-known whiskey maker, recently invested 10 billion yen ($67 million) to upgrade its distilleries, including its Yamazaki site.
Chief blender Shinji Fukuyo said he welcomes the new breed of Japanese distillers, and that Suntory is willing to advise startups “as long as it contributes to maintaining and improving the quality of Japanese whiskey overall”.
Foreign money is also coming into the market. In 2021, global drinks giant Diageo purchased an undisclosed stake in Komasa Kanosuke Distillery, founded in 2017 by the maker of traditional shochu liquor.
The Nikkei newspaper reported in March that Kentucky-based IJW Whiskey Co. has set up a Japanese subsidiary called Cedarfield to build a distillery on the northern island of Hokkaido that will be Japan’s largest.
A representative for Cedarfield declined to comment on the company’s plans.
But with new supply coming to the market and many new players, some in the industry have expressed concerns that poor quality product could tarnish Japan’s reputation.
“There’s a real fear in the industry,” said Casey Wahl, an American expatriate who founded Kamui Whiskey on the remote island of Rishiri in Japan’s extreme north.
Shizuoka’s Nakamura says producers like him can only respect the process and wait for the results.
He said, “I believe we need to put our full effort into creating Japanese whiskey that lives up to the quality of the Japanese whiskey made by our predecessors.”
This year marks the 100th anniversary of whiskey making in Japan since market leader Suntory established its first distillery in Yamazaki in 1923.
And at the centenary mark, there are now more than 100 licensed distilleries in the country – twice as many as 10 years ago – each of which is vying to make its mark in the fast-growing market.
The cedar fire – which Shizuoka claims is the world’s only wood-burning fire beneath a whiskey still – is one of several innovations these distilleries are using to differentiate themselves.
And even though their business is small compared to beverage giants like Suntory, their ambitions are world-class.
Taiko Nakamura, 54, was inspired to set up the Shizuoka distillery by a trip to Scotland in 2016.
“I looked at this distillery and I was amazed that this little place in the hilly countryside was selling whiskey all over the world,” he said. “So I thought it would be fun to make my own whiskey and then have people all over the world enjoy it.”
Craft whiskey explosion in Japan follows boom and bust Industry,
quality over quantity
Long viewed as poor imitators of Scotch, Japanese single malt and blended whiskeys began garnering international awards around 2008, leading to intense global demand that effectively outstripped supply around 2015.
The shortage sent prices into the stratosphere. A set of 54 bottles of Ichiro Malt, a pioneer in Japanese craft whiskey, sold for $1.5 million at a Hong Kong auction in 2020. Last week, Sotheby’s unveiled what it claimed was the most valuable collection Japanese whiskey At the auction, a 52-year-old bottle made headlines, selling for 300,000 pounds ($373,830).
Major producers Suntory and Nikka, a unit of beer maker Asahi Group, have spent the past decade increasing capacity and stock of the spirit, which is required at least to qualify as “Japanese whiskey” under the 2021 standards. Must be three years of age.
Suntory, Japan’s largest and best-known whiskey maker, recently invested 10 billion yen ($67 million) to upgrade its distilleries, including its Yamazaki site.
Chief blender Shinji Fukuyo said he welcomes the new breed of Japanese distillers, and that Suntory is willing to advise startups “as long as it contributes to maintaining and improving the quality of Japanese whiskey overall”.
Foreign money is also coming into the market. In 2021, global drinks giant Diageo purchased an undisclosed stake in Komasa Kanosuke Distillery, founded in 2017 by the maker of traditional shochu liquor.
The Nikkei newspaper reported in March that Kentucky-based IJW Whiskey Co. has set up a Japanese subsidiary called Cedarfield to build a distillery on the northern island of Hokkaido that will be Japan’s largest.
A representative for Cedarfield declined to comment on the company’s plans.
But with new supply coming to the market and many new players, some in the industry have expressed concerns that poor quality product could tarnish Japan’s reputation.
“There’s a real fear in the industry,” said Casey Wahl, an American expatriate who founded Kamui Whiskey on the remote island of Rishiri in Japan’s extreme north.
Shizuoka’s Nakamura says producers like him can only respect the process and wait for the results.
He said, “I believe we need to put our full effort into creating Japanese whiskey that lives up to the quality of the Japanese whiskey made by our predecessors.”
(TagstoTranslate)Shizuoka Distillery(T)Japanese Whiskey(T)Industry(T)Global Demand(T)Craft Distilleries