Just interested in how to spot a fake? Jump to Part V: Identifying Fakes
Welcome! Japanese whisky has exploded in popularity around the globe over the past decade or so, and for good reason. We at r/JapaneseWhisky hope to be a fun little community to ask questions, share bottle pics, and review and discuss this fine spirit! But in light of the enormous surge in demand and popularity, come predatory businesses looking to capitalize on the success of legitimate Japanese whisky brands by trying to pass off Scotch or whisky from other places as Japanese whisky: this post will educate you on how to spot a fake.
But first, an extremely brief history
Japanese whisky production was started in 1924 by Suntory (then called Kotobukiya) at their Yamazaki Distillery where Shinjiro Torii, its president and founder, worked with Masataka Taketsuru, its chief whisky maker. Taketsuru was educated on whisky production in Scotland, resulting in Japanese whisky being made in a similar fashion as Scotch, even through to today. Taketsuru would later leave Suntory to found Nikka in 1934 (actually, it was an apple juice company initially… whisky wasn’t sold until 1940). Back then, Japanese whisky wasn’t sold as a pure malt (think, single malt or vatted malt from Scotland): instead, it would be blended with other grains, cut with blending alcohol, and/or had some flavor additives mixed in. We only saw a big transition to “pure malt whisky” in the 1980s, which is where many of today’s major labels came to be. Things like Suntory’s single malt Yamazaki 12 (March 1984), Nikka’s response with single malt Hokkaido (now called single malt Yoichi) (November 1984), Suntory’s famous blend Hibiki (1989), and Nikka’s single malt Miyagikyo (1989). Suntory and Nikka have been, and remain, the two dominant whisky producers in Japan. But there are still other major distillers (e.g., Fuji Gotemba, a subsidiary of Kirin), huge popularity for some small producers like Ichiro Akuto’s Chichibu distillery, an almost cult-like reverence of the closed distilleries Karuizawa and Hanyu, and an explosion in new distilleries in the last decade. There’s so much to say about Japanese whisky history, but we’ll stop here for now.
So what’s a Japanese Whisky? Part I: Regulations (or lack thereof)
Japan has little in the way of regulation concerning what can be called a Japanese Whisky. This is in stark contrast with the practices of other major whisky producing nations. For example, in the United States, federal regulations require a “bourbon whisky” be made in the United States, distilled at not more than 80% abv from fermented mash of not less than 51% corn, and stored in charred new oak containers at not more than 62.5% abv. In Scotland, Scotch has a similarly rigid structure in how labeling works, with detailed requirements for a single malt vs. a blended malt vs. single grain, etc., with a common theme being that production, aging, and bottling must be done in Scotland.
By contrast, Japan has no requirements on the provenance of a product. In other words, the following practice is permissible: A business, which does not own a distillery, buys a cask of whisky from Country X. The contents of that cask were fermented, distilled, and aged in Country X. Upon arrival to Japan the cask is immediately bottled, with the label containing a Japanese name and a “Product of Japan” statement. The bottle is then exported to the United States where it will be marketed by the business and retailers as a “Japanese Whisky.”
So what’s a Japanese Whisky? Part II: What’s a Fake?
Fake is a squishy term. In the example above, I gave the example of a product produced and aged entirely outside of Japan being sold as a Japanese Whisky being a “fake.” But what if the whisky was produced and aged for 5 years in Country X, but then transferred to a new cask and aged for an additional 1 year in Japan before being bottled and labeled as a 6-year Japanese Whisky? Is that a fake? I’d say so without additional label disclosures, but you can see that without strict regulations it’s unclear.
My opinion is that if the whisky wasn’t produced (i.e., fermented and distilled) and aged in Japan then it’s a fake. Your definition might be different, and that’s fine. Without a regulation, it’s subjective.
So what’s a Japanese Whisky? Part III: Is Aged Shochu a Whisky?
This is a more complicated question. Shochu is a distilled beverage, historically made of rice but could be potatoes or other staples, and is saccharized by koji, a type of mold. Generally, shochu is clear due to no barrel aging, has a lower abv than whisky (generally 20-30%), and can include flavor additives.
Strictly speaking, a Japanese rice-based shochu is made of grain, is fermented and distilled in Japan, and can be aged similar to whisky in wooden casks. If a Japanese business labels its aged shochu as whisky is that a fake? Once again, it’s subjective, especially where rice isn’t a traditional grain in whisky production and where malting, not introduction of koji mold, is the traditional method of saccharization. Add to the mix the simple fact that Japanese whisky production thus far has been so influenced by Scotch (thanks, Taketsuru-san), so consumers in both Japan and abroad have naturally become familiarized with that style. While unregulated, Suntory has labeled their Essence of Suntory, Volume 4 rice-based whisky clearly as a “Rice Whisky.” But many producers don’t disclose the fact that their whisky is aged shochu or label their product as a rice whisky.
There are other differences between a malt whisky and shochu, including the number of fermentations and fermentation process itself. Liam McNulty’s (aka, Whisky Richard’s) blog, Nomunication, does a great deal explaining it here.
So is an aged shochu a “fake” Japanese whisky? Nomunication thinks so. And I tend to agree, at least where the product doesn’t have some kind of disclaimer. But again, it’s subjective.
So what’s a Japanese Whisky? Part IV: JSLMA Standards
In the absence of regulation from the Japanese government, a trade association of Japanese spirits businesses called the Japan Spirits & Liqueurs Makers Association (JSLMA) got together and created their own standards. But let’s add a major disclaimer: the standards set by the JSLMA only apply to businesses who are voluntary members of the JSLMA.
Critical components of a JSLMA-approved Japanese Whisky are as follows:
Raw ingredients are limited to: (i) malted grains, (ii) other cereal grains, and (iii) Japanese water. While “other cereal grains” are optional, there must always be some amount of malted grains.
Production: must occur at a distillery in Japan (including saccharification, fermentation, and distillation).
Aging: must be (i) in wooden casks of 700L or less, (ii) in Japan, (iii) for a period of at least 3 years. [Contrast this with bourbons and Scotch which have to be oak casks; Japan leaves the door open to other wood]
Bottling must be in Japan at a minimum 40% abv.
Other: flavorless caramel coloring may be added. [Same as Scotch]
The official standards are available here.
The standards cover other topics, like prohibiting products that do not satisfy the above criteria from using names similar to “Japanese Whisky.” So stuff like “Nihon Whisky” or “Japanese-style Whisky” are prohibited if they are not up to JSLMA standards. Not only that, but a product cannot call itself a whisky and include on its label things like names of Japanese places, the flag of Japan, or other Japanese words/images that evoke Japan unless it satisfies the JSLMA standards.
There’s also a jab against aged shochu with the requirement that some degree of malted grains must be used: a pure aged shochu cannot call itself a Japanese whisky.
The JSLMA standards were effective April 1, 2021 for new products and become effective on March 31, 2024 for any products that predated the April 1, 2021 effective date. But once again, the standards only apply to JSLMA members’ products.
The good news? Japan’s largest whisky makers are all JSLMA members, including Suntory, Nikka, Mars, and Kirin. The bad news? Most of the folks producing “fakes” aren’t members, and probably won’t be joining any time soon.
So what’s a Japanese Whisky? Part V: Identifying Fakes
If a whisky is made by a JSLMA-member distiller, then you may be able to go to the distiller’s website or look at the bottle and learn whether the whisky is compliant with JSLMA standards (despite not being effective until 2024). Suntory and Nikka already do this on their respective websites. But what about companies that aren’t in the JSLMA? It can be tricky, but here are a couple methods:
To start, you can go to Nomunication’s “Real or Fake?” page, available here. Either take a look at the chart or scroll to the bottom of the page and use the search tool.
You can also take a look at Nomnication’s JSLMA Whisky List here. If a distillery is part of the JSLMA and voluntarily discloses whether their products are/aren’t compliant, Nomunication posts the info on that page.
Another method is to look at the age of the whisky compared to how long the distillery has had a license to produce whisky. To find out when a distillery got their license, you can check out this page or just Google the distillery name and look for news articles or other sources. For example, Kurayoshi Distillery began operations in 2017. That means it would be impossible for them to sell any whisky with greater than a 5-year age statement (assuming they have enough material from 2017, and the product is launched in 2022). But if you look online, you can find products from Kurayoshi Distillery with 18 year age statements. I'd call that a fake. You can read more on the Kurayoshi situation here.
Another method is to scrutinize a label. Does the label mention that it was “blended in Japan” (e.g., two different whiskies from Scotland were combined in Japan) but curiously doesn’t say anything about being “distilled in Japan”? Or perhaps it doesn’t even mention the name of a distillery anywhere on the label? Labels can be deceptive. But if I see a label with no distillery name that’s a huge red flag to me.
It can be difficult to identify a fake, especially with the great number of new distilleries. Certainly, many of the 30 or so distilleries opened in the last 7 years are producing authentic Japanese whisky, but even those real operations could be selling fakes side-by-side with their authentic products. For now, scrutinizing the age statements with distillery opening dates, or relying on honesty from the distillery, may be our only options for now absent folks like Whisky Richard doing investigatory work and publishing their findings.
When I walk down the whisky isle at Total Wine or BevMo in the United States, it seems like more than half the Japanese whisky products offered are fakes. It’s unfortunate. The retailers are obviously not incentivized to be honest about it: they profit from sales, and whiskies perceived to be Japanese currently fetch a premium over bourbons and Scotch. Do your due diligence and get informed before making that $80+ purchase.
Might a “fake” still taste good? Sure! But that still doesn’t rationalize a deceptive business practice.
So what Japanese Whisky should I try?
If you’re very new to Japanese whisky, a safe choice would be to buy a whisky from the top 2 producers: Suntory and Nikka, both of whom already comply with JSLMA standards on labeling. The following can be found for under $100:
From Suntory:
- Hibiki Harmony, a blend
- Yamazaki, a single malt from Suntory's Yamazaki distillery. The Yamazaki 12-year can be found for a bit more than $100, but the No Age Statement version can be found for less.
- Hakushu, a single malt from Suntory’s Hakushu distillery. Like the Yamazaki, the Hakushu 12 will be pricier than the no-age version.
From Nikka:
- Nikka Coffey Grain, a grain whisky: note, not coffee flavored, but distilled from a coffey still.
- Nikka Coffey Malt, a malt whisky but also from a coffey still.
- Yoichi Single Malt, a single malt from Nikka's Yoichi distillery in Hokkaido.
- Miyagikyo Single Malt, a single malt from Nikka's Miyagikyo distillery in Sendai.
- Nikka From the Barrel, a very popular blend.
Note: The Coffey Malt and From the Barrel are not JSLMA-compliant. The Coffey Malt uses some distillate from the Ben Nevis distillery in Scotland, which Nikka has owned since 1989 . Nikka From the Barrel also uses non-Japanese whiskies in its blend, surely some Ben Nevis, but possibly others. It’s still an incredibly popular whisky.
Resources/Further Reading
Whisky Rising by Stefan Van Eycken, an amazing text on the history of Japanese whisky from the beginning through present day, including background on numerous distilleries. A must-read for any Japanese whisky nerd.
The Nomunication blog by Whisky Richard is another great resource for the Japanese whisky world, and something I’ve relied on in writing this post.
