Distilleries & Breweries
16 articles
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distilleryNikka Miyagikyo Distillery: Coffey Stills, Steam Heat, and the Case for Knowing Both Sides of Nikka
The Sendai distillery where Nikka's Coffey stills live: steam-heated pots, sherry cask fruit, and why the 12 Year at $180–240 is the collector's anchor.
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Akkeshi Distillery: Hokkaido Peat, Islay Blueprint, and the Annual Release Calendar Collectors Track
Akkeshi distillery: eastern Hokkaido wetland peat, Islay-inspired production design, and the 24-solar-term release calendar that serious collectors now track.
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Yamazaki: Japan's First Malt Distillery, the Three-River Geography That Shaped It, and How to Buy at Every Price Point
Japan's first malt distillery opened in 1923 at an Osaka river confluence. Geography, production philosophy, and a clear map through the Yamazaki tier ladder from Distiller's Reserve to 25 Year.
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Mars Tsunuki Distillery: Kagoshima's Subtropical Heat and What It Does to Whisky
Opened in 2016 in subtropical Kagoshima, Mars Tsunuki is Hombo Shuzo's deliberate opposite to Shinshu's alpine cool — same company, radically different climate, distinct character.
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Which Region's Japanese Whisky Should You Collect First? Hokkaido, Honshu, and Kyushu, Profiled
Geography shapes flavor and collection strategy. Japan's whisky regions mapped by character, key distilleries, and collector value — pick your starting point.
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Miyagikyo vs. Yoichi: Which Nikka Distillery Should You Buy First?
Nikka's two distilleries produce opposite characters. A flavor, philosophy, and secondary market comparison — with a real answer on which to buy first.
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Japan's Five Whisky Distilleries Worth Building a Trip Around (2026 Guide)
Yamazaki, Hakushu, Yoichi, Miyagikyo, and Chichibu — visitor logistics, distillery shop exclusives, and pre-trip sourcing for each. 2026 planning guide.
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Yoichi Distillery: Japan's Most Committed Peated Single Malt, Explained
Coal-fired stills, a Hokkaido fishing coast, and a founder who learned distilling in Scotland: why Yoichi is where Japanese whisky peat begins.
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Chichibu Distillery: How Ichiro Akuto's Family Legacy Became Japan's Craft Whisky Benchmark
Ichiro Akuto built Chichibu from salvaged family stock. It became Japan's craft whisky benchmark — and one of the tightest allocations in the category.
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Getting to Yamazaki Distillery: What the Visit Is Actually Like in 2026
Under 30 minutes from Kyoto or Osaka by JR. What the Yamazaki visit looks like, what to buy at the museum shop, and how to make the most of the trip.
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Miyagikyo: Nikka's Sendai Distillery and the Fruity Counterpoint to Yoichi
Nikka's Miyagikyo has made whisky in a Sendai river valley since 1969. Steam-heated stills, mineral water, and the other side of the Taketsuru story.
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Karuizawa: The Distillery Closed in 2000. The Whisky Is Still Arriving.
Karuizawa closed in 2000, was demolished in 2016. What's left is 400–600 casks of sherry-aged stock that commands $9,000–$65,000 at auction.
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Mars Shinshu: The High-Altitude Distillery That Went Silent for Nineteen Years
At 798 metres in the Nagano Alps, Mars Shinshu ran for seven years, closed for nineteen, and came back to define what Japanese highland whisky can be.
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Yoichi: How Masataka Taketsuru Built Japan's Other Founding Distillery in Hokkaido
Nikka's Yoichi has made whisky on the Hokkaido coast since 1934. Coal-fired stills, salt-tinged peat, and Japan's most direct Scottish whisky lineage.
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Yamazaki Distillery: A Complete Profile
Suntory Yamazaki has been the engine of Japanese whisky since 1923. Here is the full picture: founder, water, stills, core range, and why bottles vanish from shelves the day they ship.
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Hakushu Distillery: Forest Whisky from the Japanese Alps
Suntory's second malt distillery sits at 700m elevation in the southern Japanese Alps. The water, the climate, and the deliberate stylistic difference from Yamazaki shape one of the most distinctive single malts in the world.