The Day I Saw the “Future” in the Forest of Hakushu

2026.10.05

In short: a 2013 visit to Suntory’s Hakushu Distillery, before the Japanese whisky boom — an almost empty distillery, a warehouse that showed why Suntory would lead the world, and a highball that tasted “thin,” at the exact moment Hakushu 10 Year Old gave way to the no-age-statement Hakushu. By Mika Tanimoto, Bar Little Happiness, Hiroshima.

Whenever I see Hakushu’s vivid green, I remember a day full of a certain “premonition.”

It was 2013.

A little before today’s whisky frenzy began.

An empty Hakushu Distillery, and a family’s laughter

When I first visited Hakushu Distillery, it was astonishingly quiet.

The only visitors were me and one family of four.

In the vast forest, the children’s innocent, excited voices echoed — a peaceful time, as if we had come to a park for a picnic.

But the moment I stepped into the “warehouse,” the air changed completely.

Not “stored” — “nurtured”

Back then, Japanese whisky was still before its boom.

At other distilleries, it was not unusual to see casks leaking, or left covered in dust as if just “put there for now.”

But Hakushu was different.

In the cool air, countless casks were stacked neatly all the way to the ceiling.

And heavy machinery like forklifts carried huge casks and stacked them —

casks for the future, quietly and steadily.

“Ah — if whisky ever becomes popular, no distillery will be able to beat Suntory for a long time.”

Seeing that thorough management with my own eyes, I couldn’t help being sure they would race ahead to the top of the world.

(From my visit to Hakushu Distillery in 2013)

The tasting glass: “Huh? This is different from usual. Thin…?”

After such an overwhelming sight, my expectations were at their peak.

At last, the tasting I had been looking forward to.

The guide handed me a glass: “Here’s a Hakushu highball!”

I took a sip and… couldn’t believe my own tongue.

“…Hmm, isn’t this a bit thin?”

Back then, a Hakushu highball meant the “10 Year Old.”

But that was exactly the historic turning point when the long-loved “10 Year Old” was discontinued and replaced by a no-age-statement (NAS) Hakushu.

At the Hakushu Distillery tasting, I tasted Hakushu NAS for the first time.

It was so different from the taste I always drank that I went to ask the guide why — I still remember it.

“Why are they dropping the age statement?”

Whisky has a strict rule: “you may only use spirit at least as old as the age stated.”

At that moment, Suntory calmly foresaw a future shortage of aged spirit and made a big bet: “What will lead the coming highball era is this clean taste, more than maturity.”

I think it was a painful — and bold — decision to carry on “the Hakushu character” through freer blending, while protecting the brand’s tradition.

Memories are the best snack with a drink

Now distillery tours are by lottery, and getting a reservation is a distant dream.

The days (in Japanese) when I could give a staff member a “Hakushu trip with a tour booking” for their birthday feel like a long time ago.

Sadly, I have hardly any photos from that time.

But the rich smell in the warehouse, the cool air, and that “something’s off” feeling.

They are still vividly engraved in my palate’s memory.

This very bottle might hold a drop that was sleeping in one of those neatly stacked casks in 2013.

Thinking that, it feels so precious that I almost don’t want to drink it.

I keep quietly entering the lotteries for Suntory distillery tours, hoping to win again, but so far I have lost every time.

Every time guests tell me, “I went!”, I’m so jealous!!

If you are one of the lucky people who keep winning the lottery, please tell me how it was…!

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