Saburomaru distillery

Peated & Elegant

Innovations of Saburomaru distillery

1st innovation : Pot still

2nd innovation : Local Mizunara cask

3rd innovation : Wood fermentation tank

It installed in 2020. They were using enamel tanks which were originally used for sake making for whisky fermentation but to make more fruity whisky, they installed wood fermentation tank.

Wood fermentaton tank can produce more lactic acid than stainless one but thety found that this difference happens only during last 24 hours of 72-96 hours fermentation process. So they use one wood fermentation tank although they keep using the other enamel tanks.

Saburomaru distilllery was renovated in 2017Facility upgrades in Saburomaru distillery.
The old mashtank used for long was also repaced to the new stainless one in 2017

Zemon pot stills

Logging on steep slopes

Local partner cooperage

Cask celler in Saburomaru distillery

Douglas fir wood fermentation tank

Zemon
The 1st molded whisky pot still in the world

Buddhist temple bell manufacture

Copper-Tin new alloy

They need to use copper alloy due to molding method instead of pure copper. Therefore they started from alloy material research and developed special copper alloy which contains tin instead of lead for human body safety.

They made three small prototypes with different materials including new copper alloy, pure copper and stainless to checked material effect on distilled whisky and new alloy shows very good result. For example same level of removing sulfur compounds with pure copper pot still, milder taste like Tin glass and fruity flavour.

Module concept

Naming

Stainless pot still
It was oroginally build for Shochu, traditional Japanese spirtis

Copper head custom pot still
Head part was replaced to copper one for the adsorption of sulfur derived from malt

Bronze bell for Buddhist temple
The local partner, Oigo works, has 80% domestic share of Buddhist temple bell

Molding process in Oigo works

Alloy model for R＆D
They need new copper-tin alloy for molding process instead of pure copper

Plastic model and real pot still

Module concept model

Name of Zemo is come from Oigo Ziemon, the founder of Oigo works

History fo Saburomaru distillery

The birth

Burn out & reconstruction

In 1953, Saburomaru distillery caught on fire and 2,000 square meters including 6 production buildings burned out. Fortunately it was reconstructed 1 year later with great help of local people

Saburomaru distillery equipped Arospas-type column still when it was reconstructed. It was the most advanced type and there were only five units operating in Japan at that time. It had been used until around 1996 so that their long aged whisky was distilled by this although it is no more exist today.

Whisky market around 1980 was leaded by local small producers including many craft distilleries and their whisky was called Ji-whisky which means local whisky in Japanese. Saburomaru distillery increased the sales riding on that boom as the only one whisky distillery in Hokuriku area. But another challenging period was coming.

Japanese whisky ice age

Whisky domestic demand was peak out in 1984 and it had been shrinking to a quarter size of the peak for the next quarter century. Almost all Ji-whisky distilleries were closed during that long ice age. There were big 3 Ji-whisky distillery, Hanyu, Shinshu and Sasanokawa but Hanyu distillery was closed and even the other 2 distilleries had to stop whisky distillation for 20 years.

Around 1996, Saburomaru distillery had to stop Arospas type column still due to too huge production capacity for ice age demand and too old. Fortunately they could maintain whisky distillation by small stainless pot still which was originally for Shochu distillation because they are local bottling partner of Coca Cola Japan and that business was enough good to maintain small whisky distillery.

The whisky domestic market started recovering in 2009 and Saburomaru distillery survive the long ice age, but the building and production facility were becoming too old to make good whisky. In such a situation, the man returned to the distillery and realized drastic innovation there.

Wakatsuru sake brewery before founding Saburomaru distillery

Liquor lab in Wakatsuru in the early half of 1950s

Saburomaru distillery in 1952

Reconstructed Saburomaru distillery

Today's Saburomaru distillery

Takahiko Inagaki

His name is Takahiko Inagaki, founder's 5th generation head. He was working in US IT company after university graduation and came back in 2015 but he found the possibility of the long aged whisky distilled by his grandfather by Arospas column still.

But the very old facility and the leaked distillery building needed investment to make high quality whisky and the people in the company doubted if it was worth the investment because their long aged whisky released in the early half of 2010s didn’t make big commercial success.

Crowdfunding

Renewal of single malt

In fact, his whisky making target is Ardbeg 1974 which is not only peated but also so elegant. In parallel with the renovation project, he was working with local traditional craft companies to realize his ideal whisky making.

They released several single malt whisky bottles distilled by arospas type column still and finally they released 1st single malt whisky after renovation in 2020 but it was distilled by stainless pot still because distillation by new pot still started in 2019.

Takahiko Inagaki

Saburomaru ditillery before renovation in 2016

Crowdfunding in 2016

Saburomaru distillery after renovation in 2017