Standing within the brewery premises is Saburomaru Distillery that had been operating since the post-war period. Mr. Inagaki decided to launch a crowd-funding project for a major makeover of the distillery with the aim to elevate the standard of their whisky. In 2017, the brewery was reborn in a more ideal form. The brewery became the world’s first to manufacture and adopt a cast-metal made distiller. Traditionally, whisky distillers are manufactured through forging process; however, Mr. Inagaki has developed a new method of creating distillers and eventually commercialized it in 2019. After countless trial-and-errors, Mr. Inagaki discovered that whisky produced through casting metal processed distillers tastes exclusive.
Mr. Inagaki also believes that choosing the right barrel is an important essence in brewing, as the refreshing scent of the wood is absorbed by the whisky and thus characterizing the taste. Therefore, to assure complete quality control over his whisky, Wakatsuru Shuzo has been creating barrels made from locally grown Japanese oak, through collaborations with local forestry professionals and wood artisans. Wakatsuru Shuzo strictly uses heavily peated malt for brewing. Mixed fermentation of ale yeast and whisky yeast in a perfect barrel bring out a fruity fragrance to the whisky.
