The Hakushu Distillery was founded half a century after Yamazaki. Keizo Saji, the second Master Blender, inherited his father’s quest to push the boundaries of what a Japanese whisky could be. He had searched all over Japan for high quality water that would produce the most delicately aromatic whisky. After searching with tenacity to the headstreams of rivers and deep into rugged mountains, he found Hakushu. The Hakushu Distillery is one of the highest distilleries in the world, built amidst the deepest forests of Mt. Kaikomagatake in the Japanese Southern Alps. The majestic forest that surrounds the Hakushu Distillery shelters an abundance of plant varieties reflecting the many expressions of Japanese nature. The malt whiskies born here are simultaneously blessed with a very particular microclimate, verdant forests, and water offering a rare softness only made possible by filtration of rain and snow through thousand-year-old granite rocks.

Hakushu 12 Year Old is the heart of the brand. Green with herbal notes, it is distilled in direct-fire pot stills, then aged in small white oak casks for 12 years or longer. The result is a sweet, velvety smokiness, with the scents of green leaves and fruits. Hakushu 12 Year Old is an ideal choice for those who want to enjoy a whisky with roundness, complexity and hint of smokiness.