As with malt whisky in Scotland, malt whisky in Japan is made using double distillation in copper pot stills. HOW IT'S MADE:Īs covered above, Japanese whisky got its start with heavy influence from Scotch distillery processes. Today these two producers, Torii's Suntory and Taketsuru's Nikka, bottle over 75% of the Japanese whisky consumed each year. With the founding of this distillery, Nikka Whisky was born. He chose to start his distillery on the island of Hokkaido because it resembled Scotland's climate. In 1934, Taketsuru started Yoichi Distillery with the goal to create the perfect ecosystem to create scotch, in Japan. Taketsuru's primary focus and background was with a more peaty Scotch style of whisky, for this reason his contract wasn't renewed.Īfter his contract ended, Taketsuru decided to start his own distillery. Taketsuru worked with Torii for a decade, but ultimately, Torii wanted to branch further away from scotch flavor profiles. While at the University of Glasgow, Taketsuru worked for several of the best Scotch distilleries and learned a lot about the process of creating whisky.Īfter university he returned to Japan and in 1923 began working for Shinjiro Torii, at a Japanese whisky distillery for the company that would become Suntory. Taketsuru moved from Japan to Scotland to study organic chemistry. Japanese whiskies historical connection to Scotch can be traced back to one man, Masataka Taketsuru. HISTORY:Īs briefly discussed above, Japanese whisky and Scotch are often linked and that's mainly due to the historical connection between them. Overall, the spirit and expressions are more about refined taste than having a specific flavor profile or style. For this reason, they are crafted to be easier to drink and friendlier to the palate. One reason for this is because the Japanese drink their whisky with food. When compared to Scotch, in general, Japanese whisky is often described as mellower.
In addition to that they will have multiple styles of stills as well as many different barrels so they can create richly layered blends entirely self-sufficiently.ĭespite there only being a handful of companies producing Japanese whisky, self-sufficiency and the mastery of blending makes the whisky produced incredibly unique and diverse. For this reason, Japanese whisky companies will own multiple distilleries in different climates. For Japanese whisky distilleries, this means that each company must be self-reliant masters at every single whisky used for their expressions. In Japan, Suntory, Nikka, and the other distilleries do not have this same practice. In Scotland, distilleries often will exchange whisky with other distilleries to create blends. Japanese whisky and scotch have many similarities but how blended whisky is made is not one of them. However, blended whiskies also attract many drinkers to Japanese Whisky. Oftentimes when people talk about Japanese whisky they talk about the bold and peaty single malts likened to a typical Scotch. The Japanese strive to constantly experiment, improve, and perfect their whisky. One aspect or overall guiding philosophy that characterizes Japanese whisky is a focus on perfection. On the other hand, others are more restrained and subdued. Due to its historical links to Scotch, some bottles are peaty and earthy. Like Scotch, Japanese whisky tends to be drier, smokier, and peatier than American bourbon or rye.ĭespite this overall similar taste with Scotch, Japanese whisky doesn't have a single flavor profile. Like Scotch, Whisky in Japan is crafted by double distilling malted and/or peated barley before being aged in wood barrels. The similarities between Japanese whisky and Scotch don't end at the spelling.
Unlike the American and Irish versions of whiskey spelled with the "e," Scotch and Japanese Whisky is spelled without the "e." Japanese whisky is modeled after scotch both in craft and spelling. However, once you go down the rabbit hole you'll quickly realize you have been missing out! TASTE:
For many Americans, Japan might not be the first country to come to mind when you think of whisky. The journey doesn't end just because you find some gold. Whiskey is a lifestyle, not a treasure hunt. If you are new, our best advice is to try these, of course, but keep on looking and tasting and experiencing. Today, we will dive down the rabbit hole and recommend a few of our favorite bottles. On a mission to discover the best Japanese whisky around?
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