Discover the Birthplace of Japanese Whisky—Just 30 Minutes From Kyoto

"With a little luck and planning, I scored a ticket to the birthplace of Japanese whisky—the oldest malt whisky distillery in Japan—about 30 minutes southwest of Kyoto at the foot of Mount Tennōzan, and the effort was worth it. Tours must be prebooked (about $20) and, for English, won by lottery once per day, but stepping through gates made from repurposed pot-still copper I instantly felt its significance as I learned that every example of Suntory Whisky was first blended here, from founder Shinjiro Torii to today’s chief blender Shinji Fukuyo. More than a century on, it remains the home for making Yamazaki single-malt whisky and other House of Suntory bottles. Set amid lush trees where the Katsura, Uji, and Kizu rivers meet, the damp, seasonally shifting terroir shapes maturation unlike traditional whisky regions. The visit starts in a museum before a guided walk through mashing, fermentation, and distillation that showcases Suntory’s tsukuriwake—artisanship through diversity—via countless pot-still shapes and a wide range of casks. In the warehouses, I saw prized Japanese mizunara oak, recently spotlighted by the Yamazaki 25 Years Old Mizunara—the oldest whisky fully matured in Japanese mizunara and available to taste on site—while the onsite pilot distillery lends a buzzy energy amid bamboo forests, a Shinto shrine, and trickling streams. Instead of a gift shop, the experience ends in a sleek tasting room pouring component whiskies and Japan-only bottles like Yamazaki Story of the Distillery, some of the rarest you can actually drink, which made for a perfect toast to everything I’d just witnessed. I imagine the setting is beautiful year-round, as the greens give way to autumn hues and later to sakura in spring." - Liz Provencher Liz Provencher Liz Provencher is a writer and editor covering food, drink, and travel for various publications. Travel + Leisure Editorial Guidelines