Mars Tsunuki

Tsunuki is a Japanese whisky distillery owned by the Hombo Shuzo Company. It was first launched in 2016 in Minamisatsuma City in Kagoshima prefecture. 

The Hombo family has produced alcoholic beverages for more than a century. The company owns two distilleries: Tsunuki and Shinshu. 

The distillery produces whisky ranging from unpeated to super-heavily peated. Official bottlings showcase notes of vanilla, apple and citrus with gentle spice and soft smoke. 

The location was chosen because it differed greatly from the original distillery at Shinshu. The intention was to create a different style of spirit to add complexity to the company’s blends.

Four different peating levels are specified in the barley. Unpeated, lightly peated (3.5ppm), heavily peated (20ppm) and super-heavily peated (50ppm).

The distillery insists on having a clear wort. This is the sugary liquid created by mashing the grains. The mash tun is fitted with a glass window so that staff can keep a close eye on the process. Clear wort leads to a lighter spirit. 

Three types of yeast are used in fermentation. The strains are combined in different ways to create varied flavour profiles.

The wash still is cleaned daily but the spirit still is left untouched. The build-up of residue encourages a more robust spirit. Traditional worm tubs help to add weight to the new make spirit.

The whisky matures predominantly in ex-bourbon whiskey barrels and ex-sherry casks. Virgin American oak has also been used along with wine casks. Distillers have even experimented with an old Laphroaig cask from Scotland. 

Tsunuki also produces gin and other spirits.  

The Hombo family have produced alcoholic beverages since 1872. They first acquired a whisky license in 1949 but didn’t start distilling until 1960. Their first distillery lasted just nine years before being converted into a winery. 

When a boom in whisky’s popularity swept Japan in the early ‘80s, the company began distilling at their Kagoshima headquarters.

A permanent solution was found in 1985 when a distillery was constructed at Shinshu. At 800 metres above sea level, it was the highest distillery in the country. 

A dip in the Japanese economy saw the distillery mothballed in 1992. All remained silent until production eventually resumed in 2011.

By 2016, the company was looking to add some diversity to their stocks and a new distillery was planned. The new venture would reside in a much warmer climate and produce a radically different style of whisky.

Tsunuki began production in 2016. Tsunuki The First single malt launched in 2020. Matured in bourbon barrels, the 3-year-old whisky was bottled at 59%.