Nagahama Distillery’s INAZUMA series. This time, two types of “INAZUMA Blended Malt”, a collaboration product between Armorik Distillery in France and Nagahama Distillery, will be released.
French whisky has been increasingly seen in Japan in recent years, but only about five whisky distilleries in Japan sell single malt.
Distilleries that originally made liqueurs and brandy have recently started to develop whisky, and whisky aged in high-quality wine casks, typical bourbon casks, and sherry casks are being used.
In 1993, “Varenguim Distillery” was the first French whisky distillery in such French whisky industry. The distillery that produces the whisky “Armorik” and the original whisky from Nagahama distillery will be combined and two blends will be released.
1. “INAZUMA Blended Malt” by Armorik and Nagahama Distillery
1-1. style creme brulee
A recipe created by Armorik’s Paul, with Nagahama’s peated malt added as an accent to create a burnt taste. The taste is reminiscent of crème brûlée, which is reminiscent of sweets.
The product name is derived from the kanji character for “Shigeru,” the name of the prefecture, and the label features scenes of Lake Biwa and Brittany, as well as local birds. The “Japanese Style” label features a white-breasted nuthatch from Brittany against the natural background of Lake Biwa, while the “Style Crème Brûlée” depicts Shiga Prefecture’s bird, the whooper swan, against the backdrop of the coast near the Varennghiem distillery. If you look into Lake Biwa, which is depicted in the center of the design, you can see the exterior of the Varennghiem distillery and the Nagahama distillery.
INAZUMA” has been closely associated with agriculture since ancient times, and is said to bring a good harvest. The innovative combination of Brittany’s Celtic connection and Japan’s refined traditions has produced an innovative whisky. We hope you will enjoy the unique flavors of each of our whiskies to your heart’s content.
1-2. style Japanese
The recipe was created by the Nagahama Distillery blender team, and the key malt is Mizunara oak barrels, balanced with the original sake from the various barrels in Nagahama, resulting in a whisky with a “Japanese” theme.
The product name is derived from the Chinese character for “Shigeru” in the prefecture’s name, and the label features scenes of Lake Biwa and Brittany, as well as local birds. The “Japanese Style” label features a white-breasted nuthatch from Brittany against the natural background of Lake Biwa, while the “Style Crème Brûlée” depicts Shiga Prefecture’s bird, the whooper swan, against the backdrop of the coast near the Varennghiem distillery. If you look into Lake Biwa, which is depicted in the center of the design, you can see the exterior of the Varennghiem distillery and the Nagahama distillery.
INAZUMA” has been closely associated with agriculture since ancient times, and is said to bring a good harvest. The innovative combination of Brittany’s Celtic connection and Japan’s refined traditions has produced an innovative whisky. We hope you will enjoy the unique flavors of each of our whiskies to your heart’s content.
1-2. Product Specifications
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| Product name | Style Creme Brulee | Style Japanese |
|---|---|---|
| Alcohol | Blended Malt whisky | Blended Malt Whisky |
| Ingredients | Malt | Malt |
| Cask Type | Unknown | Key Malt: Mizunara Oak |
| Number of bottles | 1,000 bottles | 1,000 bottles |
| alcohol content | 50% | 50% |
| Price | 11,000 yen (including tax) | 11,000 yen (tax included) |
2. distillery introduction
Nagahama Distillery
| Address | 14-1 Asahi-cho, Nagahama-shi, Shiga 526-0056 |
| Start of operation | November 1, 2016 (Heisei 28) |
Nagahama Distillery, one of the smallest distilleries in Japan, is located in the northern part of Lake Biwa in Shiga Prefecture and has both a craft beer brewery and a restaurant. Few distilleries, including major whisky distilleries, have restaurants attached to them, and when it comes to craft whisky distilleries, they are very rare.
The unique shape of the pot stills installed in the distillery reminds us of the very origin of whisky making.
Nagahama Distillery was originally a rice warehouse from the Edo period (1603-1868), and began making beer in 1996. Later, in 2016, facilities for whisky production were installed. The building has a vaulted ceiling, with a saccharification tank and distiller on the first floor, and a grinder and fermentation tank on the second floor.
There are two pot stills for first distillation and one for redistillation, and the heating system is an alambic type pot still shaped like an indirect steam gourd, a pot still often used for distilling brandy. This alambic type pot still is a rare type of distiller in Japan. The feature of this distiller is that it has the advantage of producing clear, soft liquor with little miscellaneous taste.
Trial and error was repeated between the establishment of the company and the present. Major changes include a change in the malt mash ratio and a change in fermentation time, which was initially 60 hours but has now been changed to 72 hours. After that, distillation was done while adjusting the fermentation time in order to create different types of original sake. The number of distillation vessels was increased from two to three. When the distillery was founded, the first distillation kettle was 1,000 liters and the second distillation kettle was 500 liters, but the second distillation kettle was also replaced, and all three distillation kettles were unified to 1,000 liters. The rest of the redistillation kettles are almost never cleaned, following the example of Scottish distilleries. We have made many changes since our establishment until now.
Nevertheless, the spirit of the concept “one brew, one barrel” has remained unchanged and they continue to make whisky.
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Reference: whisky｜Nagahama Romantic Beer
Lastly: Recommended Books on Japanese Whisky
If you want to learn more about Japanese whisky, which is a global trend, we highly recommend these books.
(1).Whisky Galore Vol.29 December 2021 issue
In the December 2021 issue of Whisky Galore, published by the Whisky Culture Research Institute, we report on 11 Japanese craft distilleries, including some that are open to the public for the first time, under the title of “Japanese Whisky Craft Frontline,” the first of three consecutive issues. Why did the popularity of Japanese whisky and the craft boom occur? We will examine with interviews. Chichibu Distillery / Chichibu No.2 Distillery / Mars Shinshu Distillery / Mars Tsunuki Distillery / Kanosuke Distillery / Hioki Distillery / Ontake Distillery / Osuzuyama Distillery / Kaikyo Distillery / Hanyu Distillery / Konosu Distillery
(2). Japanese Whisky as an Education for Business
This is a book written by Mamoru Tsuchiya, a world-famous whisky critic and representative of the Whisky Culture Research Institute, titled “Japanese Whisky as a Culture that Works for Business” .
The book covers the basics of whisky, the introduction of whisky to Japan, the birth of Japanese whisky, advertising strategies and the rise of Japanese whisky, and the current rise of craft distilleries. This is a book that summarizes Japanese whisky in a very easy to understand way.
(3). Whisky and I (Masataka Taketsuru)
Masataka Taketsuru, the founder of Nikka Whisky, devoted his life to brewing whisky in Japan. This is a revised and reprinted version of the autobiography of a man who simply loved whisky and talked about himself. The book vividly depicts the days when he went to Scotland alone to study as a young man and overcame many hardships to complete Japanese whisky, as well as his companion, Rita.
(4). A Letter of Challenge from a New Generation Distillery
Launching in 2019. With the world experiencing an unprecedented whisky boom, what were the managers of craft distilleries thinking and what were their thoughts as they took on the challenge of making whisky? This book tells the stories of 13 craft distillery owners, including Ichiro Hido of Venture Whisky, famous for his Ichirose Malt, who inspired the birth of craft distilleries in Japan.
(5). Whiskey Rising
This is the Japanese version of Whisky Risng, published in the US in 2016, with much updated content. Not only does it describe the history of Japanese whisky in detail, but it also includes data on all the distilleries in Japan, including the craft distilleries that have been founded in recent years. The book also includes descriptions of the legendary bottles that have been released, as well as information on bars where Japanese whisky can be found.
