Whisky

Food & Drink | KANPAI CULTURE Jan 29, 2022

Whisky to join gin on the menu at Niseko Distillery

by Melinda Joe

Distillery's Ohoro Gin takes inspiration from its northern surroundings, the name even coming from the Ainu language.

Business / Corporate Oct 11, 2021

Inagora begins Saburomaru Japanese whisky sales on China's Tmall

According to a report released by Japan's National Tax Agency, whisky exports in 2020 grew 39.4% from the previous year, with those to China topping the country-by-country list.

Business Aug 10, 2021

Beverage-makers target high-end spirits for post-pandemic growth

by Siddharth Cavale and Francesca Landini

Drink companies are seeking M&A opportunities because sales of higher-priced drinks are expected to grow more than moderately priced beverages in the next five years.

Food & Drink Feb 24, 2021

Japanese distillery drinking up plaudits as its craft whisky proves a hit

Riding the craft whisky boom at home and abroad, a small distillery north of Tokyo is boosting production to meet a growing demand for its world-renowned and award-winning Ichiro's Malt product. Venture Whisky Ltd. in Chichibu, Saitama Prefecture, has established itself as a pioneer in ...

Business Feb 19, 2021

Japan's new whisky rules prioritize provenance in a culture that prizes blend

by Brad Japhe

Until this week, Japanese whisky could be sourced from anywhere on the planet as long as it was bottled inside the country.

Food & Drink May 30, 2020

Japanese whisky is breaking records at global auction houses

by Chris Russell

When a bottle of Karuizawa 52-year-old Zodiac Rat sold for a record price at auction in March 2020, the sale proved Japan’s whisky is serious business.

Business / Corporate Mar 18, 2020

Kirin to release two new whisky brands

Kirin Brewery Co. on Tuesday announced the release of two new domestic whisky brands. The Fuji and Riku whiskies will be the first additions to the Kirin Holdings Co. unit's lineup of the liquor in some 15 years. The move follows widespread supply shortages of domestic ...

Business Jan 31, 2020

Feeling lucky? Only lottery winners will get to enjoy Suntory's limited edition 55-year-old single malt whisky

The newest bottle in the vaunted lineup of premium Japanese whiskies is more than 55 years old. The nation's oldest distillery will release Yamazaki 55 this summer, with a supply so limited that owner Suntory Holdings Ltd. will release only 100 bottles — priced at ...

Books / Reviews | RECENTLY PUBLISHED BOOKS ABOUT JAPAN Oct 6, 2019

'The Complete Guide to Japanese Drinks': A compendium of Japan's alcohol traditions

by Iain Maloney

Stephen Lyman and Chris Bunting's "The Complete Guide to Japanese Drinks" is a beautiful, carefully put together coffee-table book full of insights, anecdotes and thirst-inducing pictures of Japan's various alcohols.

Food & Drink Jan 30, 2019

Craft distilleries making their mark amid Japanese whisky boom

A sweet aroma wafted through the air as unblended malt whisky gushed from a storage cask at Hokkaido's Akkeshi Distillery in the freezing rural north of Japan in December. The distillery, located in the village of Akkeshi in eastern Hokkaido, is just one of a ...

National / Crime & Legal Aug 21, 2018

Two arrested for selling fake whisky on flea market app Mercari

Police arrested two men Tuesday for allegedly selling fakes of Suntory Spirits's limited-edition 30-year-old Hibiki whisky via a flea market app. The men, who both work at an antique shop, are suspected of infringing upon the trademark of Suntory Holdings, the parent company of Suntory ...