The original Karuizawa distillery was founded as a winery in 1934, which then began distilling whisky in1956. The distillery sat just outside of Karuizawa, in the neighbouring town of Miyota. It was largely used in blending - like most scotch at the time too - with the exception of a limited number of single malt releases in the 1980s and 90s, which were moderately successful in Japan. The distillery was closed in 2000, with the ‘silent period’ of the late 1980s and early ‘90s leaving them struggling to continue distilling due to a lack of local and global demand for Japanese whisky. Over the next two decades, the remaining casks of precious Karuizawa liquid would go on to become some of the most sought after in the entire world thanks to their signature, rich sherried style and their new found rarity. Today, Karuizawa single malt whiskies sell for tens of thousands of dollars at auction houses around the globe, as collectors vie to get their hands on what precious little liquid remains from this legend of Japanese whisky.
Some 20+ years after the initial closure, the Karuizawa distillery is set to come back. The new distillery has been rebuilt by Shigeru Totsuka in the town of Karuizawa itself around 7 km from the original site, which was actually in a town of a different name. The new site uses the same water source and has the same climate. Totsuka chose to work with Osami Uchibori as an advisor, who was the Master Distiller at the original Karuizawa distillery before it closed. Uchibori sadly passed away before the completion of the new distillery, but Totsuka was fortunate to also work alongside Uchibori’s apprentice, Yoshiyuki Nakazato, who is now Master Distiller at the new Karuizawa.
Karuizawa was once the smallest distillery in Japan, and the capacity of the new distillery will be even lower at around 110,000L per year.
