Domain: Akkehsi

The Akkeshi distillery was founded in 2015 in the town of the same name in the east of Hokkaido—also known for its outstanding oysters—by Keiichi Toita, CEO of Kenten Jitsugyo, whose many activities have included the export of Japanese whisky since 2010. The distillery is located near the Homakai River and its surrounding peatlands. After an initial phase in which it practised ageing whiskies from other Japanese distilleries in 2013, the distillery’‘s first own whisky was distilled in October 2016 and Akkeshi New Born Foundations 1 released in 2018. The first single malt was released in 2020. Although Akkeshi was inspired by the Islay distilleries of which Keiichi Toita is so fond, it is known for using local peat and barley as well as Japanese oak Mizunara casks, also grown in Hokkaido.