Shizuoka Pot Still K Japanese Barley 2023 Edition

In the 1950s a copper wash still was built in Japan for the now-silent but legendar Karuizawa distillery. Shizuoka rescued and rebuilt that lantern-headed veteran—today known as “Still K”—and uses indirect steam to coax a light, floral spirit through its long, skinny line-arm. The result is markedly different from Shizuoka’s flame-fired Still W: bright orchard fruit, soft cereal sweetness and a hint of white blossoms, all drawn straight from the delicate new-make. 

For this release the team chose only home-grown, non-peated barley, a rare and costly ingredient in Japan. To let that grain shine, the whisky matured exclusively in ex-bourbon casks, adding gentle vanilla and honey without masking the barley’s unique and nuanced sweetness.

Bottled at a robust 55.5 % ABV, non-chill-filtered and natural in colour, Pot Still K 2023 is officially classed as a “single-wash-still whisky”—every drop comes from that one historic still. Production was capped at 6 000 bottles for domestic sale. The taste is not just a snapshot of Japanese terroir, but a quiet salute to a piece of Japanese whisky history still at work today.