Creating whisky directly from farm to bottle is a beautiful concept. However, since barley farming is not a common practice in Japan and Iiyama has an extreme climate, Kiyokawa knew this would be a challenging endeavour.

After two failed attempts, Kiyokawa and the Iiyama Mountain Farm Distillery persisted in their pursuit of homegrown barley. Finally, on their third try, they successfully created a crossbreed of barley that would withstand the extreme conditions while holding the ideal characteristics for whisky production. This victorious moment saw Kiyokawa become the first and only distillery in Japan to master the farm-to-bottle approach.

Set high in the mountains of Iiyama in the Nagano Prefecture, close to Iiyama City, this idyllic, independent distillery is nestled among some of Japan’s most precious and untouched scenery, often referenced in songs and tales of folklore, this rich, natural landscape.

The distillery’s rich malted barley, fresh and pure spring mountain water, matures in casks through the changing seasons, exposed to big atmospheric pressure changes and high variations in a single day, resulting in a more intense take up of the wood’s flavour and natural colour.

Iiyama Farm Distillery has already made great strides in its short history, and its farm-to-bottle concept is something that has not been done in Japan until now.

With success on the farming front finally achieved, whisky production quickly began as the distillery installed two state of the art 5,000L potstills. The first was a custom made, traditional potstill, while the second was a Frilli potstill, imported from Italy and the first of its kind to be installed in Japan.

Marsala Cask Tasting Notes — The palate is warm and sweet with notes of peach and apricot. Surprisingly enjoyable for a 62 percent ABV whisky.
The finish is malty, floral, with a hint of candied ginger.

Oloroso Cask Tasting Notes — Rich and complex. There is a creaminess to the mouthfeel that brings back the sherry with lots of dark fruits like raisins, black cherries, along with chocolate sweetness. Delightfully smooth for a cask strength whisky.