Suntory Hakushu

Suntory HakushuJapanese Whisky

Built at the foot of Mt. Kaikomagatake in the Southern Japan Alps, Hakushu is Suntory's second malt distillery, producing very different whiskies to those found at Yamazaki.

From the Suntory website:

In 1923, Suntory's founder Shinjiro Torii began constructing Japan's first whisky distillery in Yamazaki in the outskirts of Kyoto. Known since ancient times as Minaseno and famed for its excellent water, this district became the birthplace of Japanese whisky.

In 1929, Suntory introduced Suntory Shirofuda (Japanese for white label), Japan's first genuine domestically produced whisky. KAKUBIN (square bottle), a premium Japanese whisky, was born in 1937.

In 1973, Suntory built another distillery in Hakushu at the foot of Mt. Kaikomagatake in the Southern Japan Alps. It developed an unparalleled variety of malt whiskies and highly refined techniques in these two utopias of whisky, and brought to market such products as YAMAZAKI single malt whisky, HAKUSHU and HIBIKI, Suntory's flagship blended whisky.

Following these achievements, Suntory worked even harder in pursuit of yet higher quality. In 2003, YAMAZAKI 12 Years captured a Gold Award at the International Spirits Challenge (ISC), one of the world's most authoritative international liquor competitions.

A year later in 2004, HIBIKI 30 Years won the Trophy, the highest award in the Challenge. And in 2005, YAMAZAKI 18 Years capped off these accomplishments by winning a Double Gold medal at the San Francisco World Spirits Competition (SWSC). As suggested by these awards, all historical firsts for Japanese whiskies, Suntory's technological capabilities have earned worldwide acknowledgement and appreciation. In 2006, HAKUSHU 18 Years also captured a Gold Award at the ISC.