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We visited Nikka Whisky, Japan's 2nd largest distillery making award-winning single malts for 90 years

Nikka Whisky is eyeing new products and markets as it celebrates its 90th anniversary.

We visited Nikka Whisky, Japan's 2nd largest distillery making award-winning single malts for 90 years

Nikka’s whiskeys are among the most highly regarded in the global market for staying true to the bold, complex profile of traditional Scotch whisky. (Photo: Nikka Whisky)

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Yoichi’s air in early spring is crisp, fresh and bracing. The Hokkaido town’s proximity to the sea with surrounding mountains mirror that of Scotland’s mountainous Highlands and there is a faint briny scent as I breathed in deeply. 

Standing among the red-roofed stone structures of Nikka Whisky’s first distillery, I had a glimpse of why its founder Masataka Taketsuru, known as the father of Japanese whisky making, chose to start his craft here in 1934.

Nikka, which has been under the Asahi Group since 1954, is Japan’s second largest distillery after Suntory. As it celebrates its 90th anniversary this year with an eye on new overseas markets and products, Taketsuru’s pioneering and experimental legacy remains apparent.

The Yoichi distillery still uses direct coal-fired distillation, once a common practice among Scottish distillers but have since mostly flickered out. It takes great skill to control the high temperatures, so that the wash inside the pot stills creates a distinctly toasty and full-flavoured single malt.

Nikka's Yoichi distillery. (Photo: Nikka Whisky)

While the environmental impact is debatable, Nikka’s Yoichi single malts are among the most highly regarded in the global market for staying true to the bold, complex profile of traditional Scotch whisky, clinching top accolades in blind tastings at international awards as early as 2001 and 2008.

Since then, Nikka has picked up several awards including the World’s Best Blended Malt for its Taketsuru Pure Malt at the World Whiskies Awards in 2023. Nikka also runs a second distillery in Miyagikyo, a region on the east coast of Japan’s Honshu island, which produces grain and malt whiskies.

Tours are opened all year round to visit the Yoichi distillery’s facilities, of which nine buildings are registered as Tangible Cultural Properties, including the kiln tower used to dry barley. Take a peek into Taketsuru and his Scottish wife Rita’s restored home, and have a pairing meal at Rita’s Kitchen, which features Hokkaido ingredients.

The Yoichi distillery is one of the rare distilleries in the world using coal-fired distillation. (Photo: Nikka Whisky)

At the Nikka Museum, which reopened in 2021 after a major renovation, there are exhibits – complete with English descriptions – on Taketsuru’s whisky making journey and Nikka’s history, as well as a paid tasting bar to sample different products before picking your favourites in the retail shop next door.

On a rare media visit to Nikka’s apple cidery in Hirosaki (the cidery has never been open to the public) we get an insight into the company’s export possibilities. Located in Aomori prefecture, Hirosaki is well known for its apples, the crop whose products propped up Taketsuru’s dreams as he waited for his first whiskies to mature.

Apple cider and apple wine are now the main products from the cidery but are currently only sold in Japan. Nikka’s global marketing general manager Emiko Kaji does not rule out the possibility of expanding volume to meet demand from overseas markets.

In a move to modernise and maximise the production at their facilities, Nikka had installed a hybrid pot and column still in the cidery last year. This allows flexible production of spirits such as apple brandy, apple wine and small batches of limited-edition spirits in the future.

Nikka founder Masataka Taketsuru is known as the father of Japanese whisky making. (Photo: Nikka Whisky)

This makes me hopeful after sipping a super fun and aromatic Ringo cocktail that combined the Nikka Coffey Grain, Nikka Apple Wine and Nikka Hirosaki Cider Dry at a pairing dinner. The cider on its own is delightfully crisp and fruity, a perfect foil to cold dishes. The wine’s distinctly fresh fruitiness adds depth to cocktails or to chilled sodas on a sunny day.

Kaji said: Nikka is on the way to be a more global brand and we are cultivating new markets. Our aim is to have the most exciting distillates in the world. We want Nikka to be enjoyed in the traditional neat way but also in an innovative way in cocktails.”

She has observed whisky being increasingly used in cocktails. “When I visit the famous bars in Japan, I see global travellers, usually in their mid-20s to early 40s, they’re trying to visit all the 50 Best bars. They’re super knowledgeable and they want to know everything.

Inside the Nikka Museum, where guests can learn more about Taketsuru’s whisky making journey and Nikka’s history. (Photo: Nikka Whisky)

For bartenders like Hisatsugu Saito from Bar Owl & Rooster in Sapporo, versatile spirits that leave plenty of room for creativity are essential. He shared that at his bar, it is a “50-50 split between customers ordering off the menu and asking for bespoke drinks”. First-time visitors would try the signature cocktails and leave their orders in his hands on subsequent visits.

The precise profiles in Nikka’s spirits allow for a tipple, Saito said: “The Coffey Gin has an intense unique flavour from ingredients like sansho pepper and Japanese citruses while the vodka’s sweetness and smooth mouthfeel are perfect for a Bloody Mary. I’d use the Coffey Grain for a spirit-forward Old-Fashioned and the Coffey Malt for a gentler, sour version.”

The Nikka Coffey range. (Photo: Nikka Whisky)

Nikka has planted itself in the thick of mixology and dining action to position itself to be the go-to spirit on all occasions. It is an official partner with 50 Best Bars, and in 2010, started the Nikka Perfect Serve competition to emphasise the art of hospitality alongside bartending excellence. The Southeast Asia edition of the competition was launched last year in Singapore and Malaysia and expanded to include Thailand this year.

In the lead up to their 90th anniversary this year, Nikka launched limited edition products annually from 2021 under their Nikka Discovery Series. It included an unusual unpeated Yoichi Single Malt with fruity, spicy and herbaceous notes. The flagship celebration release, Nikka Nine Decades, is a blend of 50 whiskies distilled over the course of Nikka’s history in its various distilleries, with the oldest drawn in the 1940s. According to La Maison du Whisky Asia-Pacific, who is Nikka’s Southeast Asia distributor,  there will only be 4,000 bottles available worldwide, with “a limited few” arriving in Singapore in the last quarter of 2024 at S$3,300 each.

La Maison du Whisky’s Asia-Pacific marketing director Diego Araud shared that the best-selling Nikka bottles in Singapore are From the Barrel and the Yoichi Single Malt. “The Barrel's versatility means that it’s super easy for anyone, from the newcomer to the connoisseur, to consume it, whether as a homemade highball or Old-Fashioned.”

The Nikka Single Malt has fruity, spicy and herbaceous notes. (Photo: Nikka Whisky)

He added: “The consumption of spirits, including that of Japanese whiskies, has been impacted by Singapore’s economic downturn. Singapore's on-trade scene boasts high-quality cocktail bars seeking unique expressions for their creations. This is why Nikka's Coffey range, particularly the Coffey Malt – a very rare malted barley offering distilled in a Coffey still that delivers fruity-spicy notes instead of the usual nutty toast profile – is highly appreciated.”

Kaji emphasised: "Nikka’s products are not targeted at collectors. We don’t want you to buy our whiskies and then leave them on the shelf. We want our customers to celebrate the joys of life through our products, from entry models on a daily basis to special whiskies for special occasions.”

Source: CNA/st

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