Karuizawa Whisky | Closed Japanese Distillery | dekanta

Karuizawa Distillery

Karuizawa was a small distillery that produced first-class malt whiskeys.

There is no shortage of thawing snow at Mount Asama and the chilly climate provided an excellent location for whiskey making. In 1976 the first 100 percent domestic malt whiskey saw the light of day at Karuizawa. The whiskey was stored in small barrels, and the distillery used small pots for distillation. The storehouse of Karuizawa was also covered in ivy, which is said to assist in keeping the temperature and humidity at exactly the right levels for producing good whisky. Though small, this distillery was known for producing whiskey of the finest quality.

Karuizawa whiskeys are noted for their floral scent and maturity, making them highly sought-after products. In former times the company produced pharmaceuticals and chemicals as well as alcoholic beverages before focusing solely on alcoholic beverages.

History Of Karuizawa Distillery

Suzuki Chuji, the second son of the founder of the Ajinomoto brand, started brewing sake from soya beans and founded the Showa Brewing Corp. in 1934.

Karuizawa-map

After establishing a factory in Kawasaki, the company began producing Miraku refined sake, and in 1949, the name of the company was changed to Miraku Breweries Corp. In 1955, Karuizawa distillery was built near Mount Asama, and whisky production began.

In 1961 the company acquired wine maker Nisshin Breweries based in the city of Koshu. The Nisshin owned the Mercian brand, and under this name the company added wine its production. In the following year it acquired the Ocean brand (owned by Daikoku Wineries). Following the example of Suntory, the company became a large producer of Western style alcoholic beverages under the Ocean name.

In 1970 the company marketed Chateau Mercian wine, and then during the 1980s highball boom, the company started making sour drinks and cocktails of all sorts, such as the famous peachtree fizz that’s still popular today. In 1990 the company acquired its present name of Mercian.

For a long time, the Suzuki family owned the largest shares in Ajinomoto; however, in 1997 following a power struggle, the company president published a damning account of family’s behavior. The company was then reworked and improved before being acquired as a subsidiary of Kirin Holdings in the mid-2000s. Today, Mercian forms the nucleus of the Kirin group’s wine industry. Although the main shareholder has changed, the company itself remains largely unchanged from its Ajinomoto origins.

But Kirin could not sustain the premium whisky production, so the Karuizawa distillery and its sister distillery at Kawasaki closed in 2011. When Karuizawa was completely shuttered in 2012, the pot still and other equipment were removed, and what could be sold was sold off. As Karuizawa is now a rare, world-famous whisky, its price has almost doubled in recent times. Currently it’s not easy to get one’s hands on a bottle.

How To Find Karuizawa Distillery

Unfortunately it is no longer possible to visit Karuizawa distillery as it was closed and the land on which it stood sold in 2012.

Showing 73–108 of 131 results

Karuizawa 2000-2018 Sherry Cask #7550

Rated 0 out of 5

$9,999.99 (USD)

EUR: € 9,231.36
GBP: £ 7,915.97
JPY: ¥ 1,470,522
SGD: $13,383.17
AUD: $15,202.64

in stock

Karuizawa 2000-2018 Sherry Cask #507

Rated 0 out of 5

$9,999.99 (USD)

EUR: € 9,231.36
GBP: £ 7,915.97
JPY: ¥ 1,470,522
SGD: $13,383.17
AUD: $15,202.64

in stock

Karuizawa 2000-2018 Sherry Cask #7377

Rated 0 out of 5

$9,999.99 (USD)

EUR: € 9,231.36
GBP: £ 7,915.97
JPY: ¥ 1,470,522
SGD: $13,383.17
AUD: $15,202.64

in stock

Karuizawa 36 views of Mount Fuji Batch 21-Gohyaku-rakanji Sazaidō

Rated 0 out of 5

$11,999.99 (USD)

EUR: € 11,077.64
GBP: £ 9,499.17
JPY: ¥ 1,764,626
SGD: $16,059.81
AUD: $18,243.17

in stock

Karuizawa Cask Strength “36 Views of Aoshima Enoshima” 1999-2000

Rated 0 out of 5

$11,999.99 (USD)

EUR: € 11,077.64
GBP: £ 9,499.17
JPY: ¥ 1,764,626
SGD: $16,059.81
AUD: $18,243.17

in stock

Karuizawa Geisha 1981 ’35 Year Old’ – The Splendid Age Set (Price Upon Request)

Rated 0 out of 5

in stock

Karuizawa 50 Year Old 1965 Single Cask Bourbon (Price Upon Request)

Rated 0 out of 5

in stock

Karuizawa 32 Year Old Cask #4380 & 29 Year Old Cask #3662 Set (Price Upon Request)

Rated 0 out of 5

in stock

Lazy

Karuizawa 1980-1981 – J’avance Vers Le Futur, Pourquoi Faut Il?, Prendre Le Rythme En Soi Set (Price Upon Request)

Rated 0 out of 5

in stock

Karuizawa 35 Years Miyajima Cask #6809

Rated 0 out of 5

$49,999.99 (USD)

EUR: € 46,156.86
GBP: £ 39,579.90
JPY: ¥ 7,352,615
SGD: $66,915.92
AUD: $76,013.24

in stock

Karuizawa “36 Views Mount Fuji” Changzhou 1999-2000 Batch 24

Rated 0 out of 5

$11,999.99 (USD)

EUR: € 11,077.64
GBP: £ 9,499.17
JPY: ¥ 1,764,626
SGD: $16,059.81
AUD: $18,243.17

in stock

Karuizawa Flower “KINMOKUSEI” 1981 (Price Upon Request)

Rated 0 out of 5

in stock

Karuizawa Sanraku Ocean White Ship

Rated 0 out of 5

$289.99 (USD)

EUR: € 267.70
GBP: £ 229.56
JPY: ¥ 42,644
SGD: $388.10
AUD: $440.86

in stock

Lazy

Karuizawa 1968 Single Cask #6955 – Whisky Live Taipei 2010 (Price Upon Request)

Rated 0 out of 5

in stock

Karuizawa 1999 & 2000 Cocktail Series Cask# 7698

Rated 0 out of 5

$11,999.99 (USD)

EUR: € 11,077.64
GBP: £ 9,499.17
JPY: ¥ 1,764,626
SGD: $16,059.81
AUD: $18,243.17

in stock

Lazy

Karuizawa Geisha Collection TWE Set Cask #3555 & 8606 (Price Upon Request)

Rated 0 out of 5

in stock

Lazy

Karuizawa 1988 The Whisky Fair

Rated 0 out of 5

$5,999.99 (USD)

EUR: € 5,538.82
GBP: £ 4,749.58
JPY: ¥ 882,312
SGD: $8,029.90
AUD: $9,121.58

in stock

Lazy

Karuizawa Koi 1984 Cask #4021

Rated 0 out of 5

$25,999.99 (USD)

EUR: € 24,001.56
GBP: £ 20,581.54
JPY: ¥ 3,823,359
SGD: $34,796.27
AUD: $39,526.88

in stock

Lazy

Karuizawa Sumo 48 Wrestlers – Three Bottle Set Cask #3680, 3648 & 824 (Price Upon Request)

Rated 0 out of 5

in stock

Lazy

Karuizawa 36 Views Of Mount Fuji – The Kazusa Province Sea Route Batch 13

Rated 0 out of 5

$11,999.99 (USD)

EUR: € 11,077.64
GBP: £ 9,499.17
JPY: ¥ 1,764,626
SGD: $16,059.81
AUD: $18,243.17

in stock

Lazy

Karuizawa 36 views of Mount Fuji Batch 14 Edo Nihon-Bashi

Rated 0 out of 5

$11,999.99 (USD)

EUR: € 11,077.64
GBP: £ 9,499.17
JPY: ¥ 1,764,626
SGD: $16,059.81
AUD: $18,243.17

in stock

Lazy

Karuizawa 36 Views Of Mount Fuji – Tsukuda Island In Musashi Province Batch 15

Rated 0 out of 5

$11,999.99 (USD)

EUR: € 11,077.64
GBP: £ 9,499.17
JPY: ¥ 1,764,626
SGD: $16,059.81
AUD: $18,243.17

in stock

Lazy

Karuizawa 36 Views Of Mount Fuji – Shore Of Tago Bay Batch 16

Rated 0 out of 5

$11,999.99 (USD)

EUR: € 11,077.64
GBP: £ 9,499.17
JPY: ¥ 1,764,626
SGD: $16,059.81
AUD: $18,243.17

in stock

Lazy

Karuizawa 17 Years Prince Hotel Limited Edition

Rated 0 out of 5

$4,599.99 (USD)

EUR: € 4,246.42
GBP: £ 3,641.34
JPY: ¥ 676,439
SGD: $6,156.25
AUD: $6,993.20

in stock

Lazy

Memories of Karuizawa 1999- 14 years

Rated 0 out of 5

$8,999.99 (USD)

EUR: € 8,308.23
GBP: £ 7,124.37
JPY: ¥ 1,323,469
SGD: $12,044.85
AUD: $13,682.37

in stock

Lazy

Karuizawa Tokyo International Bar Show 2013

Rated 0 out of 5

$9,499.99 (USD)

EUR: € 8,769.80
GBP: £ 7,520.17
JPY: ¥ 1,396,996
SGD: $12,714.01
AUD: $14,442.50

in stock

Lazy

Memories of Karuizawa 1996- 16 years

Rated 0 out of 5

$8,259.99 (USD)

EUR: € 7,625.11
GBP: £ 6,538.59
JPY: ¥ 1,214,651
SGD: $11,054.50
AUD: $12,557.37

in stock

Lazy

Karuizawa Ghost Series 16 Years 1996 – 2013

Rated 0 out of 5

$20,999.99 (USD)

EUR: € 19,385.88
GBP: £ 16,623.55
JPY: ¥ 3,088,097
SGD: $28,104.68
AUD: $31,925.55

in stock

Lazy

Karuizawa 1984 Single Cask #2563

Rated 0 out of 5

$15,999.99 (USD)

EUR: € 14,770.19
GBP: £ 12,665.56
JPY: ¥ 2,352,836
SGD: $21,413.08
AUD: $24,324.23

in stock

Lazy

Karuizawa 33 & 35 Year Old ‘Emerald Geisha’ Bourbon Set (Price Upon Request)

Rated 0 out of 5

in stock

Lazy

Karuizawa 35 Year Old ‘Emerald Geisha’ Bourbon Cask # 8518

Rated 0 out of 5

$54,999.99 (USD)

EUR: € 50,772.55
GBP: £ 43,537.89
JPY: ¥ 8,087,876
SGD: $73,607.51
AUD: $83,614.57

in stock

Lazy

Karuizawa 1980 Harbour City 35 Years ( Price Upon Request )

Rated 0 out of 5

in stock

Lazy

Karuizawa 1979 35 Year Old Single Cask #8187 (Price Upon Request)

Rated 0 out of 5

in stock

Lazy

Karuizawa 1990 #679 Geisha

Rated 0 out of 5

$21,999.99 (USD)

EUR: € 20,309.01
GBP: £ 17,415.15
JPY: ¥ 3,235,150
SGD: $29,443.00
AUD: $33,445.82

in stock

Karuizawa 35 Year Old “Snow Scenes” 2 Bottle Set (Price Upon Request)

Rated 0 out of 5

in stock

Karuizawa Golden Geisha 33 Year Old Whisky (Price Upon Request)

Rated 0 out of 5

in stock