Whisky · Style · Short entry
Japanese whisky
Whisky mashed, fermented, distilled, matured and bottled in Japan under a 2021 standard of the Japan Spirits & Liqueurs Makers Association. The standard is an industry rule, not a law.
Method
Saccharified, fermented and distilled at a distillery in Japan, below 95% abv; matured in Japan at least three years in wooden casks of up to 700 litres; bottled in Japan.
The 2021 standard
Under the Japan Spirits & Liqueurs Makers Association standard, effective 1 April 2021, "Japanese whisky" must be made only from malted grains, other cereal grains and water extracted in Japan, always including malted grains; be saccharified, fermented and distilled at a distillery in Japan, at less than 95% alcohol; be matured in Japan for at least three years in wooden casks of not more than 700 litres; and be bottled in Japan at not less than 40%. Plain caramel colouring is allowed.
The Association is government-approved but not a government agency, so the standard is enforced internally by its members rather than by legislation.
How it connects
Method
- technique Cask maturation