6. Whisky Distilleries in Chugoku Region

6. Chugoku Region

Hiroshima Prefecture

6-1. Sakurao B&D Sakurao Distillery

*The company name was changed from “Chugoku Brewery” to “Sakrao Brewery and Distillery” on March 9, 2021.

Chugoku Brewery, located in Hiroshima Prefecture, is a long-established brewery founded in 1918.
In fact, it has a deep history in whiskey making, having produced and sold malt whiskey from 1938 to 1989. At that time, the distilled original whiskey was stored in a warehouse in Togawachi that utilized a JR West Japan railroad exploratory tunnel.
In 2008, the company began selling Togawachi Whiskey, a blend of the original whiskey stored in the Togawachi storage facility and imported original whiskey. (Ninety percent is exported to Europe.)

Image source: Togouchi Whiskey, Chugoku Brewery

Then, in 2018, in order to take on the challenge of new possibilities in Western-style distilling, new facilities were installed and a craft distillery, “Sakurao Distillery (SAKURAO DISTILLERY),” was established from Hiroshima.
While ” Sakurao Gin, ” a craft gin, is currently the company’s main product, it also focuses on whiskey and produces a variety of whiskeys, including “Single Malt Sakurao,” “Single Malt Togouchi,” and “Togouchi Premium (blended whiskey),” which is made exclusively from domestic sake.

Image source: SAKURAO DISTILLERY | Craft distillery presented by Hiroshima to the world

Representative spirits of the Sakurao Distillery .

Detailed distillery information

To learn more about the distillery, click here↓.

SAKURAO DISTILLERY(サクラオブルワリーアンドデ...

日本酒、焼酎、みりんなど、日本ではじめて紙パック容器に日本酒を入れて販売するなど、酒類製造総合企業として広島で長く親しまれてきた中国醸造が、設立100周年を記念して新たに立ち上げ。2021年に「株式会社サクラオブルワリーアンドディスティラリ...

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6-2. Sakurao B&D Sakurao Distillery Forest Site

The location is within the premises of the tourist exchange facility “Yoshiwa Charming Village”. Originally a complex facility with auto-camping, concert hall, hot spring facilities, etc.
The facility has been operated and managed by Hatsukaichi City as the installer, but has already closed. The site is approximately 5,650 square meters in size.

The company is constructing the park as a “theme park with a whiskey distillery attached that will attract new whiskey fans as well as domestic and international whiskey lovers, with the aim of transmitting and educating about the spirit of Japanese craftsmanship and local culture.

The distillery will be equipped with state-of-the-art manufacturing facilities from Germany and pot stills from a traditional Scottish distiller. A tour course will be set up to allow visitors to experience the production process and the appeal of whiskey.
Through “SAKURAO DISTILLERY FOREST SITE”, we will contribute to the spirit of Japanese craftsmanship and the transmission and education of local culture.

6-3. Miyake Honten SETOUCHI DISTILLERY

Miyake Honten, a long-established brewery that produces and sells “Senpuku,” a Japanese sake known for its commercial “How about a glass of Senpuku?
It is named SETOUCHI DISTILLERY, with the hope of transmitting its products from the Setouchi area to the world.

The unused buildings in the factory will be renovated and used for whiskey production. The cost of the barrels and distillation equipment was approximately 100 million yen. Equipment for whiskey production was made in China. The mash tun is made of stainless steel, and the fermentation tank is also made of stainless steel for beer. The first distillation is done with a pot still and the second distillation is done with a hybrid still.

The whisky is named “Setouchi,” which is also the production area, and single malt whisky is produced.

The water is pumped up from a well 60 meters underground from an independent 737-meter-high mountain called Haigamine. The high-quality water, which contains just the right amount of minerals, is classified as soft water and is soft, mild, and easy to drink. The annual production is equivalent to 100 230-liter barrels.

In September 2021, the company released ” Craft Gin Setouchi, ” which has been highly acclaimed.

Currently, the 2-year-old Newborn is sold exclusively through the official online SHOP.

三宅本店 瀬戸内 クラフトジン 檸檬 47度 700ml

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Tottori Prefecture

6-4. Matsui Shuzo Kurayoshi Distillery

Matsui Shuzo, a brewery in Kurayoshi, Tottori Prefecture, founded in 1910, obtained a license to produce whiskey in 2015. 3 pot stills were installed in 2017 and full-scale whiskey distillation will begin.
The whisky ” Kurayoshi,” which was first sold in 2016 before the company began distilling its own whisky, appears to have been made with imported original sake.

As of 2024, the company has acquired a site for a closed school building and plans to install 20 new distillers by 2029 with the construction of a new plant. If true, it will be the largest in the country.

Typical whiskies from Kurayoshi distillery

マツイ ピュアモルト ウイスキー 倉吉

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6-5. Chiyomusubi Brewery Sakaiminato Distillery

Founded in 1865, the Chiyomusubi Brewery, which mainly produced shochu and sake, obtained a license to produce whiskey. Following the craft gin “Inpakuto” and craft vodka “Enjin,” the distillery has embarked on the production of Western-style whiskey.

The whiskey is expected to be distilled and casked in June 2021 and sold in the fall of 2024.

The whisky will be called ” Kurahuto,” and will be available in three- andseven-year-old single malt whiskies, priced at around 7,000 to 8,000 yen for the three-year-old and 10,000 yen for the seven-year-old, respectively.

The stills are to be made in 2023 with the introduction of domestically produced copper pot stills.

By using sake yeast and Scottish whisky production methods, the company aims to produce the one and only whisky.
The company plans to blend the whisky using Mizunara and cherry casks, but also plans to sell single casks. The price will be around 12,000 yen.

The company currently has no whisky distillery, but plans to invest approximately 200 million yen to build a distillery with a tasting corner and a tour course.

三宅本店 瀬戸内 クラフトジン 檸檬 47度 700ml

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Okayama Prefecture

6-6. Miyashita Shuzo Okayama Distillery

Miyashita Shuzo in Okayama Prefecture is a long-established sake brewery established in 1915.
Until now, they have made sake, beer, shochu, and liqueurs, but in 2011, they obtained a license to produce whiskey and began developing whiskey.
In 2015, they installed a German-made pot still, a single distiller for whiskey, and started full-scale operations as Okayama Distillery.

Image source: Sake Kobo Dobokan

After three to five years of aging, the original sake distilled in-house, Single Malt Whiskey Okayama was released in 2017.
Barley malt from Okayama Prefecture and subsoil water from the clear Asahikawa River are used to make the original sake, which is then aged in more than 10 different types of wooden casks, including sherry, brandy, bourbon, white oak, as well as domestic wooden casks represented by Mizunara oak. After much trial and error, Ginjo Whiskey Okayama was perfected, and is characterized by its youthful flavor and delicate, thirst-quenching taste.

Single Malt Whiskey Okayama Triple Cask won the Gold Award at the Meiningers International Spirits Award ISW 2019 in Germany. At the World Whiskies Awards 2020, it won Category Winner, the highest award in the Single Malt No Age category.

Representative spirits of Okayama Distillery .