What Is Japanese Rum? A Guide to Japan’s Rum Distilleries, by a Bartender Who Visits Them

2026.10.07

“Where is Japanese rum made?”
It is one of the questions I am asked most often at the counter.

Japanese rum is rum made in Japan. It is not only made on islands where sugarcane grows, such as Okinawa and Kagoshima. Today there are producers across the country, in Fukuoka, Kagawa, Ehime, Kochi, Chiba, Toyama and the Ogasawara Islands of Tokyo.

I am Mika Tanimoto, and I have run Bar Little Happiness, a whisky and rum bar in Hiroshima, for 20 years. On this page I have gathered the Japanese rums I have learned about by visiting distilleries, listening to the makers and pouring their rums at my counter.

My aim is a page where you can understand Japanese rum today at a glance. I will keep updating it each time I visit a new producer.

What is Japanese rum?

Rum is a spirit made from sugarcane. By raw material, it falls into three main types.

• Traditional (molasses): made from molasses, a by-product of sugar making. More than 80% of the world’s rum is this type.
• Agricole: made directly from fresh sugarcane juice. A rare type.
• High-test molasses: made from sugarcane juice boiled down into syrup.

What makes Japanese rum interesting is how Japan’s own ingredients and techniques come into play.

• Ingredients from Japan’s sugar culture, such as kokuto (brown sugar) from Okinawa and Kagoshima and wasanbon molasses from Kagawa
• Shochu distilleries making rum with the fermentation, distillation and cask-ageing skills they have built over many years
• Rums made with local ingredients, such as katsuobushi (dried bonito), Okinawan cinnamon (karaki), peanuts and iyokan citrus

For the basics of rum itself, see this article.
→ What Is Rum? A World Map of Rum from a Bartender Who Travels to Distilleries

List of Japanese rum distilleries

Here are the producers on this page, by region. “My record” shows whether I have visited the distillery or written about it.

Region	Producer	Main brand	Raw material and features	My record
Okinawa, Iejima	Iejima Bussan Center	IE RUM, IE LAB	Island sugarcane; a series made with island ingredients	Visited, article
Okinawa, Miyakojima	SAHIRA Spirits	ANGE	100% Miyakojima molasses	Not yet
Okinawa, Naha	Mizuho Shuzo	KOKUTO DE LEQUIO	Okinawan kokuto; a rum made with katsuobushi	Article
Okinawa, Minamidaito	Grace Rum	COR COR	Island sugarcane	Not yet
Kagoshima, Ibusuki	Oyama Jinshichi Shoten	ACOU RUM	Ibusuki molasses and Kagoshima kokuto; made by a shochu distillery in a copper still	Visited, article
Kagoshima, Hioki	Komasa Jozo, Hioki Distillery	KOMASA RUM -Aged-	Molasses; aged 6 years in shochu casks and more	Visited, article
Kagoshima, Akune	Oishi Shuzo	JAPONICUS RHUM AGRICOLE	Japanese sugarcane and yeast from Kumamoto University	Not yet
Kagoshima, Tanegashima	Daito Seito Tanegashima	ARCABUZ	Tanegashima sugarcane juice (agricole)	Not yet
Kagoshima, Kikaijima	Kikai Distillery	KIKAI RUM	Japanese kokuto	Not yet
Kagoshima, Tokunoshima	Takaoka Jozo	Rurikakesu	–	Not yet
Fukuoka, Asakura	Ebisu Shuzo	RuRuRum	100% Asakura sugarcane (agricole)	Spoke with the president
Kagawa	Umayado Distillery (Mima Sangyo)	RON SETO WHITE	Kagawa wasanbon molasses	Visited, article
Ehime, Uchiko	Tenjinmura Brewery	THE ORIENTAL RUM	Made with sake yeast by a former sake brewer	Article
Kochi	Kikusui Shuzo	Ryoma	–	Not yet
Chiba, Minamiboso	Boso Oigura Distillery	BOSO Rhum	Estate-grown sugarcane; agricole and high-test molasses	Visited
Toyama, Tonami	Saburomaru Distillery (Wakatsuru Shuzo)	Mizunaram Crystal	Iejima raw sugar and Japanese molasses; filtered through mizunara charcoal	Distillery visited, articles (whisky)
Tokyo, Hahajima	Ogasawara Rum Liqueur	–	–	Not yet
Saitama, Chichibu (planned)	Fine Spirits	Rainmaker	Rum by a former Ichiro’s Malt distiller who went independent	Joined a trial distillation, article
Shiga, Otsu	Nine Leaves	Nine Leaves	Honshu’s first rum distillery; Taramajima kokuto and very soft water. Closed in 2023	Visited, article

Japanese rum producers by region

Okinawa

Iejima Bussan Center | IE RUM, IE LAB (Iejima)

Rum made on Iejima, an island in Okinawa. The experimental “IE LAB” series combines the rum with island ingredients.

• IE LAB KARAKI: a spiced rum with Okinawan cinnamon (karaki)
• IE LAB JIMAMI: a spiced rum with island peanuts (jimami)

My record: I visited the distillery on Iejima some years ago. I still remember the sweetness of the raw syrup and the rum ageing in the cask that they let me taste.
→ Okinawan Rum × Okinawan Ingredients: The Story of IE LAB

SAHIRA Spirits | ANGE (Miyakojima)

A white rum made from 100% Miyakojima sugarcane molasses, distilled and bottled on the island. Its name means “angel” in French.

My record: I have not visited yet. When I do, I will write about it and add it here.

Mizuho Shuzo (Naha)

A long-established awamori distillery in Okinawa running the “ONE RUM” project, which makes rums that bring out the character of kokuto from eight of Okinawa’s outer islands.

My record: A rum I have poured at my counter.
→ A Katsuobushi Rum? KOKUTO DE LEQUIO Smoky Umami Rum

Grace Rum | COR COR (Minamidaito)

Rum made from sugarcane grown on Minamidaito Island, Okinawa.

My record: I have not visited yet. When I do, I will write about it and add it here.

Kagoshima

Oyama Jinshichi Shoten | ACOU RUM (Ibusuki)

Japanese rum from a shochu distillery founded in 1875. It is named after the large akou tree that stands near the distillery.

• Raw material: the distillery buys all the molasses from local farmers who grow sugarcane naturally in Ibusuki, and blends it with Kagoshima kokuto
• Distillation: a 500-litre copper still (indirect heating), run about 15 times for each batch
• Five makers, including the president; about 200 casks rest in the warehouse
• Current releases: White and Aged

My record: I visited in 2026. The handwork of a shochu distillery goes straight into this rum.
→ Part 1: How the Japanese Rum ACOU RUM Was Born
→ Part 2: Five Makers, Handmade Japanese Rum

Komasa Jozo, Hioki Distillery | KOMASA RUM -Aged- (Hioki)

Rum made at the shochu distillery of Komasa Jozo, the company known for Kanosuke Distillery.

• Raw material: molasses, out of respect for “the very first traditional rum”
• Fermentation: 8 days with kokuto shochu yeast, bringing shochu’s approach to rum (2 to 3 days is typical for rum overseas)
• Ageing: 6 years (distilled in 2020), in re-charred rice shochu casks and sherry casks
• The still is the same one used for the spirit in the whisky “Kanosuke HIOKI POT STILL”

My record: I visited in 2026 and asked why the very first release was an aged rum.
→ KOMASA RUM -Aged-: How a Shochu Brewery Made a 6-Year-Old Japanese Rum
→ President Norihisa Komasa on Coming Home to the Family Business

Oishi Shuzo | JAPONICUS RHUM AGRICOLE (Akune)

An agricole rum developed by a shochu distillery in Akune, Kagoshima, together with Kumamoto University. Everything from the sugarcane to the yeast is Japanese.

My record: I have not visited yet. When I do, I will write about it and add it here.

Daito Seito Tanegashima | ARCABUZ (Tanegashima)

An agricole rum made by a sugar company on Tanegashima. Sugarcane grown on the island is pressed right after harvest, and the rum is made from that fresh juice.

My record: I have not visited yet. When I do, I will write about it and add it here.

Kikai Distillery | KIKAI RUM (Kikaijima)

Rum made from Japanese kokuto by a distillery on Kikaijima in the Amami Islands. It draws on the island’s tradition of kokuto shochu making.

My record: I have not visited yet. When I do, I will write about it and add it here.

Takaoka Jozo | Rurikakesu (Tokunoshima)

Rum made by a distillery on Tokunoshima in the Amami Islands.

My record: I have not visited yet. When I do, I will write about it and add it here.

Fukuoka

Ebisu Shuzo | RuRuRum (Asakura)

An agricole rum made from 100% sugarcane grown in Asakura, Fukuoka. The project began in 2022.

My record: I have not visited yet, but I have spoken with the president.

Shikoku

Umayado Distillery | RON SETO WHITE (Kagawa)

Rum from Mima Sangyo, made from the molasses left over when making wasanbon sugar in Kagawa. It is a traditional rum. “RON SETO” means “rum of the Seto Inland Sea” in Spanish.

My record: I visited Umayado Distillery. At my bar, I served it in a cocktail that tastes like sakura mochi, making the most of the wasanbon sweetness.
→ Sakura Mochi in a Glass with RON SETO WHITE

Tenjinmura Brewery (Uchiko, Ehime)

A brewery run single-handedly by Akiko Kameoka, a former sake brewer. She makes rum with sake yeast.

My record: A rum I have poured at my counter.
→ Sichuan Pepper × Iyokan: THE ORIENTAL RUM from Tenjinmura

Kikusui Shuzo | Ryoma (Kochi)

Rum made by a brewery in Kochi.

My record: I have not visited yet. When I do, I will write about it and add it here.

Kanto

Boso Oigura Distillery | BOSO Rhum (Minamiboso, Chiba)

A distillery founded in 2020 in Chikura, Minamiboso, Chiba. It makes agricole and high-test molasses rums from sugarcane it grows itself without pesticides.

My record: I have visited the distillery. I will write about it and add it here.

Ogasawara, Tokyo

Ogasawara Rum Liqueur (Hahajima)

Rum made on Hahajima in the Ogasawara Islands, Tokyo.

My record: I have not visited yet. When I do, I will write about it and add it here.

Toyama

Saburomaru Distillery | Mizunaram Crystal (Tonami, Toyama)

A rum from Saburomaru Distillery of Wakatsuru Shuzo, known for its whisky. Made from Iejima raw sugar and Japanese molasses, aged in bourbon casks and filtered through charcoal made from Toyama mizunara oak, it is a crystal-clear rum. Its concept is “tropical daydreams from Toyama”.

My record: I visited Saburomaru Distillery for my whisky writing and wrote a five-part report.
→ Saburomaru Distillery: A Five-Part Visit

Chichibu

Rainmaker | A rum by Mr. Oshima, formerly of Ichiro’s Malt (distillery planned in Chichibu)

Rum by Mr. Oshima, who spent 15 years at Ichiro’s Malt before going independent. He plans to build his own rum distillery in Chichibu.

My record: I joined his trial distillation at a distillery in Kagawa that he borrowed for the day.
→ Rainmaker: The Japanese Rum of Ichiro’s Malt Veteran Mr. Oshima

Shiga

Nine Leaves | Honshu’s first rum distillery (Otsu, Shiga)

Honshu’s first rum distillery, founded single-handedly by Yoshiharu Takeuchi in Otsu, Shiga, in 2013. It closed in 2023.

• Raw material: kokuto from Taramajima, Okinawa
• Water: very soft water with a hardness of 12
• Stills: pot stills by Forsyths of Scotland
• Silver medal at RHUM FEST PARIS 2014, the first international award for a Japanese rum
• The rum that was still ageing was taken over by Velier of Italy

My record: In 2022, the year before it closed, I visited the distillery and tasted the middle cut, fraction by fraction.
→ A Letter to a Lost Rum: What Nine Leaves Left Behind

Frequently asked questions

Q. What is Japanese rum?

Rum made in Japan. It is shaped by Japanese ingredients such as kokuto from Okinawa and Kagoshima and wasanbon molasses from Kagawa, by sugarcane grown in each region, and by the fermentation, distillation and cask-ageing skills of shochu distilleries.

Q. Where in Japan is rum made?

Mainly in the sugarcane regions of Okinawa (Iejima, Miyakojima, Minamidaito, Naha and more) and Kagoshima (Ibusuki, Hioki, Akune, Tanegashima, Kikaijima, Tokunoshima and more). There are also producers in Fukuoka, Kagawa, Ehime, Kochi, Chiba, Toyama and the Ogasawara Islands of Tokyo, and new rum distilleries are planned in Chichibu and Niigata.

Q. What is the difference between shochu and rum?

The biggest difference is whether koji is used. Kokuto shochu is made from kokuto with rice koji; rum is made without koji.

Q. Where can I drink Japanese rum?

At Bar Little Happiness in Nagarekawa, Hiroshima, we always have more than 200 rums alongside our whiskies. I have served the Japanese rums from my articles at the counter, together with the makers’ stories. Our stock changes, so if there is a bottle you would like to try, please send me a DM on Instagram (@littlehappiness7).

Whisky and rum taste even better when you know the hearts of the people who make them.
Every encounter is meant to be. Welcome to the world of Rum & Whisky.