Kanosuke Japanese whisky heads to UK

Diageo-backed Japanese whisky maker Kanosuke has launched its core range and a limited edition expression in the UK.

Kanosuke is based in Japan’s southern coastal region of Kagoshima and is part of family-run business Komaso Jyozo, which operates a shochu distillery. The range includes Kanosuke Japanese Single Malt, Kanosuke Hioki Japanese Pot Still Grain Whisky, and the limited edition Kanosuke Single Malt 2023 (59% ABV). Yoshitsugu Komasa honed his whisky-making skills in Scotland and the US before establishing Kanosuke Distillery, named in honour of his grandfather, Kanosuke Komasa, in 2017. His grandfather was a second-generation distiller who pioneered Japan’s first aged rice shochu in 1957. In 2021, Yoshitsugu, who was at the time president of Komasa Jyozo, left the Hioki Distillery in the hands of his younger brother, Norihisa Komasa, to focus on whisky production at Kanosuke. The distillery uses three different pot stills (instead of the typical two), resulting in a ‘wide range of flavours’ and complexity in its whiskies. Located along the Fukiagehama beach in Kagoshima, the Kanosuke distillery benefits from warm summers and cool, breezy winters, said to create an ideal climate for whisky maturation by providing ‘deep, mellow flavours’ in just four years. The company’s flagship single malt (48% ABV) is made with a small portion of peated malt and is matured in ex-shochu, ex-Sherry, and American white oak casks. It carries an aroma of banana, salted caramel and cinnamon sugar, followed by flavours of candied quince, ginger, orange peel and honey. Meanwhile, the Hioki expression (51% ABV) is inspired by traditional Irish pot still whiskey and made with a blend of malted and unmalted barley. It has been distilled at Hioki Distillery by Norihisa Komasa using a stainless-steel pot still and vacuum distillation that is typically used for shochu production. The whisky offers a nose of fresh cut wood, stone fruit, citrus and flavours of vanilla, orange marmalade and almonds. The Double Distillery bottling combines the single malt and Hioki Pot Still whisky, created by the brothers in honour of their grandfather. Distilled at both the Kanosuke and Hioki distilleries, the liquid is a blend of malted and unmalted whiskies produced from 100% barley, double distilled using a combination of Kanosuke's three Miyake copper pot stills and Hioki's stainless steel pot stills. The 53% ABV whisky is described as having a floral aroma with stone fruit and lemongrass. The palate has notes of black tea, clove, orange peel and raspberries. "We are very proud to share Kanosuke Distillery's whiskies with UK whisky connoisseurs," said Yoshitsugu Komasa, founder, master blender, and CEO of Kanosuke Distillery. "Our Kanosuke whiskies embody the rich heritage and innovative spirit of our family's shochu-making tradition. We are excited to bring our whiskies to the UK and drive the Japanese craft whisky category forward with innovative, exciting offerings with a real sense of place." The average age of the Hioki Pot Still Grain Whisky is three years, while the single malt and Double Distillery blend sit at between three and five years. The core expressions are priced between £89.95 (US$117) and £98.95 (US$129). Beyond Japan and the UK, the brand's whiskies are sold in the US, France, Germany, China, Taiwan, Hong Kong, Singapore, Macao, Indonesia, Malaysia, and Australia.