Japanese whiskey “Kanosuke HIOKI POT STILL”, a standard product from the Hioki Distillery of the Komasa Kanosuke Distillery, will go on sale December 1. Features, price, and purchase site.
Following “Single Malt Kanosuke,” “Kanosuke HIOKI POT STILL,” which will become a standard product, is now on sale.
It is distilled at the distillery in Hioki, Japan, using a new type of Japanese pot still inspired by Irish pot stills. This is a new form of Japanese whiskey from the Yoshinosuke Komasa Distillery. The suggested retail price is 12,100 yen (tax included).
What is Komasa Kanosuke Distillery?
3-1. Manufacturer
Yoshinosuke Komasa Distillery Co.
| Establishment | August 2021 |
| Head office | 845-3 Gannokawa, Hiyoshi-cho, Hioki-shi, Kagoshima 899-2421 |
| Owned distillery | Kanosuke Distillery |
3-2. Kanosuke Distillery
Kanosuke Distillery
| Location | 845-3 Gannokawa, Hiyoshi-cho, Hioki-shi, Kagoshima 899-2421 |
| Start of operation | 2017 (the first year of operation) |
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The Kanosuke Distillery stands on a 9,000 m2 site along Fukiage Beach on the west coast of Kagoshima Prefecture.
The U-shaped, two-story main building houses distilling facilities, a bar with a great view, and a store selling original goods.
The main feature of the distillery is that it is equipped with three pot stills (large, medium, and small). Each has a capacity of 6,000 liters, 3,000 liters, and 1,600 liters, respectively.
Craft distilleries (small distilleries) around the world generally have two stills. Whiskey is usually distilled twice, and by using pot stills with different shapes of necks and angles of line arms at the top during the second distillation (redistillation), the aroma and flavor of the original whiskey can be more richly changed.
Fukiage beach, where the distillery is located, is one of the “Three Great Sand Dunes of Japan” and has been selected as one of the “100 Best Sandy Beaches in Japan. The beach stretches about 47 km from north to south, and strong winds blow in from the sea. It is hot in the summer and cold in the winter, with temperatures near zero degrees Celsius, and snow flurries are not uncommon.
3-3. Hioki Distillery
Hioki Distillery
| Location | 3309 Hioki, Hiyoshi-cho, Hioki-shi, Kagoshima 899-3101 |
| Start of operation | 1883 |
Originally started out making sake for the Hioki-Hachiman Shrine and distilling authentic shochu. Today, the company manufactures and sells liqueurs, spirits, and whiskey. Its representative brand is the “Kozuru” series of potato shochu.
Among them, “Mellow Kozuru” has its own unique manufacturing process and proprietary know-how, such as being recharged and used in single malt Kanosuke.
The distiller is a stainless steel straight vertical distiller used for shochu.
Image Exhibit: Kanosuke Distillery Official HP
The whiskey produced at Hioki is “grain whiskey,” but it differs from the continuous distillation process normally used for grain whiskey.
At Hioki, whisky is distilled under reduced pressure in a single-stage distiller, which keeps the distillation rate low. This results in a strong whiskey that retains the flavor derived from the ingredients.
This is truly a “Japanese pot still” unique to the Komasa Shuzo brewery, which has a long history of shochu production.
3. photo of the bottle and the website where it can be purchased
KANOSUKE HIOKI POT STILL JAPANESE WHISKY
KANOSUKE HIOKI POT STILL JAPANESE WHISKY
4. features of the Kanosuke HIOKI POT STILL
The Hioki distillery is the original shochu distillery that produced Komasa Shuzo’s signature product, the Kotsuru series, and Komasa Gin was also made at the Hioki distillery.2 Following the Kanosuke distillery, the Hioki warehouse will obtain a whiskey production license in 2020 and begin producing grain whiskey, and this will be its first release. This is the first release.
Kanosuke HIOKI POT STILL is made from barley and malt at the Hioki distillery, saccharified and fermented in a unique process, carefully distilled in a single distiller, and stored in new American white oak and bourbon barrels at the Kanosuke distillery.
Please enjoy this powerful yet gentle new Japanese whiskey, which was nurtured in Hioki, “a place where you can see the sunset as if the sun had been set.
TASTING NOTE
Color: Deep tortoiseshell
Aroma: Buttersand, kabosu, apricot, plum compote
Taste: Madeleine, oaky, moderately salty, marmalade, Onshu tangerine
Aftertaste: vanilla, dry ginger, gentle sweetness lingers for a long time
Reference: Kanosuke Distillery official website
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4-1. Tasting Notes
Aroma Butterscotch cookie, plum, banana milkshake Taste Florentine, dried orange, kumquat, new oak oaky Aftertaste Sweet spices like vanilla and cinnamon, slowly exiting 4-2. Product Specifications
| Alcohol content | 51% (with a minimum of 2.5 percent alcohol by volume) |
| By Alcoholic Beverage | Grain Whisky |
| Barrel type | Bourbon barrels, new American oak barrels |
| Volume | 700ml |
| Suggested retail price | 12,100 yen (tax included) |
| Release date | December 1, 2023 |
5. Awards
No awards have been received at this time.
6. list price and online price
6-1. Manufacturer’s suggested retail price (list price)
| Product name | Kanosuke HIOKI POT STILL JAPANESE WHISKY |
| Capacity | 700ml |
| Suggested retail price | 12,100 yen (tax included) |
6-2. Resale price on Mercari
The resale price on Mercari is around16,000yen to 17,000 yen. (*As of 12/6/2023)
6-3. Yahoo Auction Sold Price
Currently there are no confirmed successful bids on Yahoo! Auctions. The lowest bidder was about 16,800 yen.
(*as of 12/6/2023)
6-4. Rakuten, Yahoo Shopping, Amazon
The price seems to be about 19,800 yen and up on mail order sites. (*As of 12/7/2023)
6-5.Prices offered at BAR Shinkai
At BAR Shinkai, which is operated by this site, one glass, 45ml: 3,630,yen 30ml: 2,420 yen, 15ml: 1,210 yen, etc. are offered in small quantities.
7. Summary
This product is very easy to drink for its strength, and seems to be a standard product in the future. The label composition is similar to that of ” Single Malt Kanosuke. The release of this grain may lead to the release of a blended whiskey made entirely at the Komasa Kanosuke distillery in the future, and we will keep an eye on the limited edition that may be released in 2024.
Please check out our other articles on Kanosuke Distillery.
Please check out other articles about Kanosuke.
