Attracting worldwide attention
Whisky makers from Chichibu, Saitama Prefecture <Part 2>

Ichiro Akuto is known as a revolutionary in the whisky industry.How did he set up Japan's only whisky manufacturer?　And what is whisky production rooted in the Chichibu region?

writer：Sayuri Tsuji

In 1941, his grandfather established a distillery in Hanyu City, and in 1980 he introduced pot stills, which were rare at the time, and made malt whisky using traditional methods.

In those days, however, Old and other easy-drinking, water-drinkable whiskies were in their heyday.But at the time, Old and other easy-drinking, water-drinkable whiskies were in their infancy, and there was little demand for unique whiskies.If you stick to making whisky, it becomes more and more unique.

After graduating from university, he joined Suntory.However, when the business of Toa Brewery, which his father had taken over from his grandfather, deteriorated, he left the company in 1996 to help his father's company.

However, the company went bankrupt in 2000.Toa Brewery was then sold to another brewer, but the new owner was not interested in whisky, so the pot stills were removed in 2004 and the company withdrew from the whisky manufacturing business.

'When I saw the equivalent of 400 casks of malt spirit in maturation that had been decided to be disposed of, I felt it was my role to get it out into the world, and from then on I looked around for a place to take it back.'

However, at the time, whisky consumption was declining.None of the companies wanted to hold any more stock.

'When I was at my wits' end, I heard from someone that the Sasanogawa Brewery in Fukushima Prefecture had a whisky licence, so I went there.When I told them about the situation, they said, 'It's a loss for the industry, you should use our warehouse' and they agreed to let me use their warehouse to store the barrels.

At the same time, Ichiro set up the Venture Whisky Company and started bottling the following year.The first product was called Ichiro's Malt Series Vintage Single Malt 1988.It was limited to 600 bottles and cost 13,500 yen.

'The Chichibu distillery didn't exist yet at the time, and the Hanyu distillery was being manhandled.I wanted to have my own distillery eventually, but until then, I thought that as a bridge brand, the best way to convey my thoughts was to put the name of the distiller on it, so I launched the Ichiro's Malt series."

This is where Ichiro's bar-hopping journey begins.

'I decided at the beginning.I decided that I would stop when I had drunk all my capital.From then on, I visited each bar one by one and asked the bartender to taste it.The bartenders were the first to support us.They don't judge you by your brand, but by your taste."

"Almost every day, I went around to three to five bars a day.I went to three to five shops a day, almost every day.', or introduce me to other shops.They also appreciate it, which gives me more confidence.

However, there is a limit to the amount of whisky that can be made at the Hanyu distillery.And because it has been in storage for so long, there is no future for it unless he makes it himself.

'During the day I worked on establishing a new distillery, and at night I sold it to bartenders, telling them about my dream of establishing a distillery.When the Chichibu distillery was finished, one bartender said, 'It's really done, isn't it?' .......When I asked him about it later, he said that at first he thought there was a strange old man who wanted to build the distillery himself (laughs)."

In 2006, I spent a month at the Karuizawa distillery making whisky, and it was at the bar that I enjoyed discussing whisky with the people from Mercian.The label with the playing card motif was also discussed over drinks at the bar with a designer I met while visiting the bar in this way.We have a lot of samples lined up in front of us. ......"

Ichiro explains why he chose playing cards for the label.

I wanted to focus on the content.Many Japanese single malts are designed with Japan in mind, but I didn't dare to use Chinese characters.I thought that if I did that, people from overseas would choose it for its 'taste'.I chose playing cards because it was time to open four casks, so I thought that four different types of cards would be good.If I decide on a label for each cask, people will remember it like, 'A for the heart is what I like'.

In the twists and turns of the past, did you have any doubts?

'There were people who said that whisky wouldn't sell, but when I actually went to bars, I found that there were lots of people who liked malt whisky.I thought that since there are so many people who enjoy it, it would be okay."

"But actually, it was after I left Suntory that I started to think that whisky was interesting.When I was working for a major company, I tended to drink their products, so I only saw whisky made by small and medium-sized manufacturers as a bargain product.As I went round the bars myself, I started to think that the climate-produced whisky made by small distilleries, taking advantage of the local characteristics, could be a good thing."

Ichiro's Malt's symbol is an acorn.It is also on the label and embroidered on the chest of the polo shirt Ichiro is wearing.

'Acorns eventually become oaks (oak or oak trees).Ours is still an acorn, but I made it with the hope that it will eventually grow into a big tree.Every time I look at it, I hope it will bring me back to my beginnings.

Malting, the process of soaking the malt, which is the raw material for whisky, in water to germinate it before it is crushed, is also very important.While many distilleries purchase malt that has been mass-malted by maltsters, Ichiro intends to use local two-row barley harvested this year to try a manual floor-malting process that is rarely done anymore.

'For the last two years we've tried floor malting ourselves.If the malting with local barley goes well, I think we will be able to produce a single malt with more of a Chichibu character."

A single malt matured in the Chichibu environment, using barley and water produced in Chichibu.We can't wait to see what it will taste like.