Kanosuke Distillery was suffused with the scent of Scottish malt when a group of U.S. whiskey experts visited earlier this year. At this coastal facility on the Japanese island of Kyushu, fourth-generation master blender Yoshitsugu Komasa was brewing the wort for his single malt.
One of three of his whiskies to launch in the U.S. this past July, the single malt is also a component in Kanosuke Double Distillery Whisky, which includes peated malt and a grain whisky vacuum distilled at nearby Hioki Distillery, where his family has made shōchū for 140 years. Its separate parts are aged in an array of barrels—new American oak, ex-bourbon and sherry barrels, and re-charred ex-shōchū casks. But for all the innovation behind the Double Distillery Whisky, under new guidelines implemented in April 2024, it can still be labeled Japanese whisky, while many other whiskies from Japan cannot.
“Komasa-san decided to make products that we think would not violate the guidelines,” says Roland Ng, Kanosuke’s general manager for the Americas. The distiller had been approached by would-be partners to bottle his whisky outside of Japan or age it at sea in international waters, but Komasa had declined. “He is on the committee that wrote the guidelines. If we want to lead by example, we can’t do those things.”
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The guidelines were set by the Japan Spirits & Liqueurs Makers Association (JSLMA). In 2021, its members unanimously adopted voluntary standards: To be labeled Japanese whisky, a spirit must contain malted grain; be made with only grain and Japanese water; and be saccharified, fermented, distilled (to less than 95% ABV), and bottled (to more than 40% ABV) in Japan.
The standards represent the next stage in the evolution of a young yet volatile category. In 2016, there were 10 active whisky distilleries in Japan. This year, the Japanese Whisky Research Centre counted 127, as producers jumped on the soaring export market. For the 54 whisky distilleries in the JSLMA—some of whom, like those owned by Suntory and Nikka, have been making the spirit for decades—the standards help control what had become a chaotic category. The JSLMA seems to be onto something; from a high in 2022, Japanese whisky saw exports decline nine percent in volume and nearly 11 percent in value, with some believing consumer confusion was contributing to the downturn. “When it’s less Wild West and consumers are more confident it’s a real product, that helps with mainstreaming Japanese whisky,” says James Bowker, the global advocacy manager for House of Suntory.
These are only agreed-upon rules, not legal mandates, and many distilleries are not JSLMA members. Nonetheless, the standards provide essential clarification about what Japanese whisky should be, and several observers see them as a step toward a legal definition, such as that of Scotch or bourbon. But while they might be a boon to established producers, who can use them to market both their Japanese and world whiskies more effectively, for newer, craft distillers, the standards are more complicated. Some will be able to capitalize on the elevated status of the category—and there is already an influx of new Japanese whiskies—but others will fail to meet the expectations of the premium market and fall by the wayside.
SevenFifty Daily spoke to producers and Japanese whisky experts to dive into what these changes mean for the category.
Controlling the Export Market
For much of its first century, Japanese whisky was a sleeper. That is, until 2015, when Jim Murray’s Whisky Bible named Suntory’s Yamazaki Sherry Cask 2013 the world’s best whisky. “All of a sudden, the category was moving,” says Tommy Tardie, the owner of New York’s Flatiron Room. “People wanted to try the Sherry Cask, but it was never released in the U.S. So they would say, ‘Let me try something else.’ Big, bold, or heavily peated whiskies were not approachable to everyone. Japanese whisky was light, elegant, and accessible. It was empowering for people.”
“Aficionados started buying up Japanese whisky,” recalls Jonathan Adler, the beverage director of the Manhattan-based Japanese whisky specialist Shinji’s Bar. “In a few years, the price skyrocketed.”
This boom and the opportunity it represented had consequences for the category, however. “Companies started importing Scotch or bourbon, aging it a little, and selling it as Japanese whisky,” explains Liam McNulty, aka Whiskey Richard, the editor of the Japanese whisky site Nomunication. “They relied on customers outside of Japan being unaware of what is legitimately Japanese whisky.” Cheaper, more plentiful, and sometimes suspiciously similar in look to prominent brands, these spirits threatened to undercut the market for whisky actually distilled in Japan. “It ruins your first experience if you buy cheap Scotch and pay extra because you think it’s Japanese whisky,” says McNulty.
Repackaged whisky isn’t the only product worrying the JSLMA. “Distillers tell us their main issue is the sale of unlicensed products, mainly shōchū, as whisky in other countries,” says K&L Wine Merchants spirits buyer David Othenin-Girard. “In Japan, these can’t be called whisky.” Since the TTB doesn’t have the same rules, producers can legally pass off shōchū as Japanese whisky in the U.S.
Hence, the new labeling requirements. “The standards will help buyers make sure that, when they are creating their stock lists, they are selecting brands that are really Japanese whisky,” says Bowker.
Why did the JSLMA make the move now? “Part of it was the big guys were waiting for their inventories to mature so they could meet the moment,” says Eric Swanson, the founder and partner at Tokiwa Imports. But he also credits American buyers. “Great shops and wholesalers were inquisitive enough to ask the right questions and push for it.”
Elevating Both Japanese and World Whisky
As the head of an association representing all spirit and liqueur makers, Tomo-o Arai, the executive director of the JSLMA, is careful to note the legitimacy of shōchū and world whisky blends. “There is no difference in quality between Japanese whisky that fits the definition and Japanese whisky that doesn’t, for example, those produced by blending whisky produced in Japan and whisky produced outside of Japan; each has its own deliciousness,” he says.
But because a well-regarded blend like Nikka From the Barrel contains some Scotch, Nikka has removed “Japanese whisky” from its label, making sure to note on its website, “This product does not meet all the criteria of ‘Japanese whisky’ defined by the Japan Spirits & Liqueur Makers Association.’” The three-year lag time in the full enactment of the JSLMA standards allowed producers time to change labels of whiskies like this that were already on the market.
“Suntory, Nikka, Kirin, Mars, and Chichibu—why would the big boys want to regulate themselves, if they’re already controlling most of the market?” asks Pedro Shanahan, the spirit guide at Pouring With Heart, a hospitality company headquartered in Los Angeles. One reason, he says, is “to protect the sanctity of their high-end single malts.” But they’re also using differentiation to strengthen the world whisky market. “You can still blend Japanese and other whiskies. From a historic point of view, they always did.” After all, he says, Masataka Taketsuru, Japan’s first master distiller, learned to make whisky in Scotland, where trading spirits for blending is common.
“Japan’s flexibility in product development is unique. The currently established category of world whisky is a progressive product that is unparalleled abroad,” says Chichibu global ambassador Yumi Yoshikawa. “We believe that what matters is not whether it is Japanese or not. The important thing is transparency. Consumers may mistakenly believe that Japanese whisky is higher in the hierarchy, but the standards only provide a clear indication of where the whisky originates. We are conscious of communicating clearly what kind of whisky each product is made from and the concept of the product itself.”
In this way, distillers like Chichibu can capitalize on their history of global blending with clearly labeled products like their Ichiro’s Malt & Grain World Blended Whisky, at the same time that they’re promoting other bottles that fit the new definition of Japanese whisky.
Standards as a Marketing Tool
The JSLMA standards, says Othenin-Girard, are “really are about marketing. You need an identity, a way to tell people what Japanese whisky is. It gives people a framework to make the best purchase.”
Given a history of limited supplies, Japanese whisky has been expensive. “When you’re competing with Wild Turkey 101, which is excellent at $20, how can you break in when your base price is $90? Transparency is going to give the consumer confidence in their willingness to pay higher prices. It will allow smaller distilleries that are really able to say they are creating Japanese whisky to get shelf space,” says Shanahan.
“Any Japanese craft whisky distillery will potentially benefit from a standard,” McNulty agrees. “It enables them to give more of a luxury, hand-crafted image. Whisky fans appreciate that.” He cites Toyama prefecture’s Saburomaru Distillery, which he says has been “quite vocal about the need for a standard since several years ago,” as well as Hokkaido’s Akkeshi Distillery, which has “been pretty specific about recreating Islay malts using Japanese ingredients, wood, and peat.”.
Adler sees precedence in other geographically designated brands with a reputation for luxury. “It helps Japan in the same way Champagne is a designation. There might be Crémant just as high quality, but they are saying this is Champagne and it is only Champagne.”
The Case for Further Measures
For some observers, voluntary standards are not enough. Shanahan and Othenin-Girard argue for a holographic tax stamp indicating authenticity. That would require government action. Whisky critic Mamoru Tsuchiya of the Japanese Whisky Research Centre has launched a nonprofit, the Japanese Whisky Culture Promotion Committee (JWCPA), to lobby the National Tax Agency to issue a decree that would make the JSLMA standards law.
“They went to the JSLMA, but the JSLMA said they are not going to help,” says McNulty. He complains that the JSLMA has done no global marketing or English-language press release for the new standards beyond a PDF on its website. “A lot of people are still not aware that the standards exist.” He suspects bigger producers have a vested interest in keeping compliance voluntary. “If you look at Suntory sales, 98 percent of whiskey they sell here doesn’t qualify as Japanese whisky.”
Yet, Bowker, Suntory’s global ambassador, asserts, “Suntory would be supportive of legal regulations to protect these guidelines. We’ve been pushing for good regulation for some time, now in negotiation with government agencies and the JSMLA. This is the first step.” Chichibu, says Yoshikawa, supports a law, too.
If producers are in favor of legalizing the definition, why hasn’t more been done? “One thing you find that’s different about how Asians perceive things compared to Westerners, we don’t expect a hard law to change our behavior,” Ng says. Bowker agrees: “The soft power of these trade associations is not to be overlooked.”
Arai is taking a wait-and-see approach. “First, after establishing the standards, the situation of products being sold as Japanese whisky in both domestic and international markets will be investigated to decide whether legalization or regulation by the National Tax Agency is necessary.”
In the meantime, Tardie has faith in the ability of trade pros and serious whiskey consumers to discern authenticity now that they have guidelines to point to. “We saw that with transparency in the American whiskey market, when people were held accountable for these romantic stories that were fictional, like they found the recipe in the attic, but really it was produced at MGP. The information is out there, and people are vocal about it,” he says.
What the Future Holds
Experts say there will be attrition, as the market corrects itself, calming its earlier fervor. “There are small craft distilleries that will follow the standards, but they’re built on this ideal of an insatiable market, and I don’t know that it’s insatiable. I think we have to earn it,” says Swanson. With labeling requirements in place, “now you have to win by quality. How many will survive? Maybe they’re so small-scale that they can’t.”
Ng points to the competitiveness of the export market. “For someone who doesn’t speak English, drop-shipping through an importer and distributor to America and expecting them to explain why your whisky is different—it is going to be tough. Some will succeed through investment or consolidation. Some can’t.”
But a group of upstarts will succeed. “There’s a new wave of Japanese whisky coming, and American buyers should give it a try,” Ng continues. “There are a lot of different choices than just those of the larger houses.” Take the distillery he works for, Kanosuke. With a three-year-old minority investment from Diageo, the brand has been able to market itself in an iconoclastic way. “We are positioning as next-gen craft whisky from Kagoshima following whisky-making tradition but also challenging convention. We’re not beholden to making whisky like Scotland. That’s the difference you’ll see.”
“Kanosuke is in a prime position to see growth,” Shanahan observes. “They have land, the soil is great, there are hot summers, cold winters, and massive drops in temperature during the year for faster maturation, so Kyushu sounds like Kentucky to me. Kentucky’s whiskey trail is a huge economic engine. It could be the same for Kyushu, where you can surf, hike the volcano, eat sashimi on the beach, and taste whisky.”
That would take more whisky production on the island. But with multiple shōchū makers there, it’s not inconceivable that others join Kanosuke, and regional economies engender regional styles. Adler points to Nikka’s smoky Yoichi Single Malt. “Masataka Taketsuru went to Hokkaido thinking it was similar terroir to Scotland and he could replicate a peated style. Now there is Akkeshi in Hokkaido. Their goal is Islay-style whisky. So I’m interested to see if heavily peated is going to be a trend in Hokkaido. Just as we have different designations of Scotch based on loose styles, it would be interesting for the Japanese to do the same now that they have a standard in place.”
Ng sees another new phenomenon on the horizon. “Largely for the whole history, it was two distilleries that didn’t like each other,” he says, referring to Suntory and Nikka, the distillery Masataka Taketsuru launched when he left Suntory. Now whisky distillers have unified around the new standards. As they purchase less juice from abroad in the future to meet the criteria for their Japanese whiskies, “we’re going to see collaboration. Chichibu and Mars collaborated on a malt exchange. The five blenders from the biggest houses all got casks from each other and made blends in commemoration of 100 years of Japanese whisky. So times are changing.”
In the meantime, he has a message for American buyers: “Don’t be afraid to ask questions. Producers who are making authentic whisky have nothing to hide.”
Dispatch
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Betsy Andrews is an award-winning journalist and poet. Her latest book is Crowded. Her writing can be found at betsyandrews.contently.com.
