Chichibu

Chichibu

One of the most interesting distilleries in Japan that everybody should pay attention to nowadays is Chichibu. Opened in 2008, this small brand is shaking up the established order of Japanese malt masters and the world. They utilize the perfect climate of humid summers and cold winters and join it with a focus on quality and an innovative approach to producing whisky.

Chichibu distillery is one of the most impressive, ground-breaking and innovative whisky producers in Japan. Despite its small size and relatively short market presence (it was created in 2008), Ichiro Akuto’s distillery has managed to grab the attention of whiskey connoisseurs from all over the world. Chichibu’s style is much different from what other Japanese distilleries represent. It combines tradition with new, bold concepts, making the alcohol excellently unique. One of the perfect examples of Chichibu’s quality is the Intergalactic Series that entered the market in 2019.

While the Chichibu distillery imports the unpeeled malted barley from England and Germany, the peat malted barley comes exclusively from Scotland. The young Japanese distillery uses the first two days to produce alcohol from sugar. Their single malts ferment for three to four days. Interestingly, it is twice as long as in most of the distilleries. Then they are distilled twice to reach an alcohol level of 23% (first distillation), and then up to 70% (second distillation). The additional two days open the alcohol palette further and allow for more pronounced fruity flavours and notes.