Mars Shinshu
The Mars Shinshu Distillery is the highest distillery in Japan, located among the Japanese Alps at 798 meters above sea level. The very picturesque territory is that of the small village of Miyada, nestled among the mountains of Nagano Prefecture. Here, the harsh climate, pure air, and the presence of mountain spring water contribute exceptionally to the production of high-quality whisky.
The Mars Shinshu is a small independent distillery, founded in 1985 by Kiichiro Iwai, the shochu producer who played a fundamental role in the global spread of Japanese whisky, sending his subordinate Masataka Taketsuru, the future founder of Nikka, to Scotland to learn all the secrets of production. After founding and directing the Yamanashi distillery for 9 years, producing very intense and peaty whiskies, Kiichiro Iwai chose the territory of the Japanese Alps to obtain more elegant, sweet, and light whiskies. The very harsh climate and high altitude favored a slow maturation in cask, and the pure spring waters, filtered through the granite soils of the mountains, made the distillate soft and delicate. Despite limited production, this productive reality played a leading role in the qualitative development of Japanese whiskies thanks to the brilliant insights of its founder, now celebrated as one of the top four most relevant figures in the history of Japanese whisky.
Today, the Mars Shinshu distillery is owned by the Hombo family, producers since 1949, who reopened it in 2011 after twenty years of inactivity. The first casks produced of distillate are slowly maturing and will be available in several years; in the meantime, two Blended Whiskies have been marketed that have achieved great success worldwide and confirm the elegant, soft, and delicate style that once made this distillery famous.
The Mars Shinshu Distillery is the highest distillery in Japan, located among the Japanese Alps at 798 meters above sea level. The very picturesque territory is that of the small village of Miyada, nestled among the mountains of Nagano Prefecture. Here, the harsh climate, pure air, and the presence of mountain spring water contribute exceptionally to the production of high-quality whisky.
The Mars Shinshu is a small independent distillery, founded in 1985 by Kiichiro Iwai, the shochu producer who played a fundamental role in the global spread of Japanese whisky, sending his subordinate Masataka Taketsuru, the future founder of Nikka, to Scotland to learn all the secrets of production. After founding and directing the Yamanashi distillery for 9 years, producing very intense and peaty whiskies, Kiichiro Iwai chose the territory of the Japanese Alps to obtain more elegant, sweet, and light whiskies. The very harsh climate and high altitude favored a slow maturation in cask, and the pure spring waters, filtered through the granite soils of the mountains, made the distillate soft and delicate. Despite limited production, this productive reality played a leading role in the qualitative development of Japanese whiskies thanks to the brilliant insights of its founder, now celebrated as one of the top four most relevant figures in the history of Japanese whisky.
Today, the Mars Shinshu distillery is owned by the Hombo family, producers since 1949, who reopened it in 2011 after twenty years of inactivity. The first casks produced of distillate are slowly maturing and will be available in several years; in the meantime, two Blended Whiskies have been marketed that have achieved great success worldwide and confirm the elegant, soft, and delicate style that once made this distillery famous.
