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Fuji whisky celebrates 50 years with single malt
A limited edition whisky celebrating the 50th anniversary of Fuji Gotemba Distillery uses distillate from its inaugural production run in 1973.
Fuji 50th Anniversary Single Malt includes whiskies ranging in age from 12 to 50 years old. It was aged in a combination of barrels including Bourbon, beer, oloroso Sherry, and French oak red wine.
“To commemorate our distillery’s 50th anniversary, I meticulously hand-selected malts and conducted nearly 100 test blends to artfully craft this special edition whisky – a richly complex expression,” said master blender Jota Tanaka.
Tanaka is only the second master blender in the distillery’s history. For this limited edition release, he used liquid from the inaugural distillation in 1973, as well as some from the 70s, 80s, 90s, 2000s, and 2010s.
A total of 3,000 bottles will be produced, with 400 heading to the US. The whisky, which is bottled at 52% ABV and priced at US$500, will be available in California, Washington, Texas, Illinois, New York, New Jersey, Georgia, and Florida.
On the nose, the whisky shows notes of caramel, brown sugar syrup, apricot and melon. The palate brings dried pineapple and white peach.
In October 2023, Fuji launched in the UK thanks to a partnership with distributor Spirits Cartel. The core range has three expressions: single grain, single malt, and blended.
The Spirits Business reported this autumn that demand for Japanese whisky was softening as supply increased, fueled by new entrants to the category like Fuji, which offer consumers greater choice.
In October 2024, Nikka released an anniversary whisky, Nine Decades, which combined whiskies made at six distilleries from the 1940s to the 2020s. That release was in celebration of Nikka’s 90th anniversary, with 4,000 bottles available worldwide and 400 released in the US for US$3,000.
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