Japanese whiskey made from home-grown corn will take on Kentucky bourbon
- Hokkaido produces most of Japan’s corn, and now its first corn-based whiskey, which will have many parallels with bourbon produced in the US state of Kentucky
- ‘I believe this will be the first whiskey ever made in Japan using the bourbon method,’ says the owner of one of the distilleries producing the drink
In the vast, rolling fields of Hokkaido, northern Japan, the corn crop is ripening. The vast majority of the prefecture’s corn traditionally ends up as animal feed each year – but Hidekuni Hayashi is convinced there is a far better use for the sweet golden kernels.
Hayashi, the owner of Hokkaido Liberty Whisky, is working with two other distilleries and a research organisation in Japan’s northernmost prefecture to blend corn with a touch of barley and the region’s famous water. The result? The nation’s first corn-based whiskey.
“The only bourbon that is sold in Japan is made in the United States, and I believe this will be the first whiskey ever made in Japan using the bourbon method,” said Hayashi. “We will not be able to use the name ‘bourbon’, so in that sense it will be a completely different drink, but if it is good, I think it will catch on.
“Also, I think we can benefit from Nikka Whisky in terms of marketing, as Hokkaido is well-known around the world and we can promote our products to visitors from all over the world,” he said. “And in the future, it may be possible to age the whiskey in barrels made with wood from Hokkaido.”