Fukano Distillery Whisky – 2017 Edition
Last Updated 10/23/2020
One of the first releases from Fukano Whisky: the 2017 Edition is light, smooth, grainy, and malic. As a whisky, it’s aromatic and lightweight– qualities of its rice koji and rice mash bill. A nutty umami takes center stage, but citrus and floral notes also vie for attention. The finish is quite long. Other notes include salted caramel, dried apricot, chestnut, green apple, banana, fresh flowers, brown rice, and vanilla.
Fukano Whisky blurs the lines between rice shochu and whisky– defying easy classification. It’s emblematic of the Kuma River valley– using local ingredients and shochu-making know-how. Whether you call it a light but complex rice whisky, a rich, powerful shochu, or koji whisky: it’s very tasty and deserving of attention. If you’re a fan of Japanese whisky, or a shochu geek– the 2017 Edition is highly recommended!
Fukano’s distillery is located in the fertile Kuma River valley around Hitoyoshi, Kumamoto. This region has long been famous for its fruity and smooth rice shochu (Kuma-jochu #熊焼酎). Fukano makes those too, of course. For Fukano whisky, their rice spirit is aged in used oak barrels for an “appropriate” (NAS) amount of time. This adds a beautiful copper color and some subtle oak-spice flavors. Because this product uses rice koji instead of malted barley and is distilled only once– it’s basically honkaku shochu. However, legally, shochu is unable to have too much color. This is so that it won’t be confused with whisky. Fukano definitely crosses that threshold. As far as I can tell– Fukano is neither whisky nor shochu, but rather the love child of both. But if you want to call the 2017 Edition a rice whisky or koji whisky, that’s OK with me.
Pairing and Service
Although it’s a lightweight whisky– Fukano 2017 Edition is great on its own or with/post dessert. Pair it with simmered fish and meat dishes and grilled chicken or pork. Raw oysters too. Lastly, a cheese plate will also generally produce favorable food and whisky results.
Serve Fukano 2017 Edition neat, rocks, and/or with a splash of water. It makes a seriously fine Old Fashioned. The vermouth in a Manhattan can overpower Fukano 2017– so scale back a bit. One interesting way to enjoy this shochu-based whisky is as an oyuwari. By extension: this Fukano is made for hot toddies!
Tech and Product Information
Ingredients: Rice, Rice Koji
ABV: 42.8% Age: NAS
Barrles: Ex-Fukano whisky barrels and first-fill French red wine casks
Approximately 4400 bottles produced
Recommended Whisky Products
As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases.
The Fukano Whisky Distillery
Distillery: Fukano Shuzo 深野酒造 Location: Hitoyoshi, Kumamoto
Official Site (Japanese)
This small distillery resides within the fertile rice-growing Hitoyoshi Basin 人吉盆地 of Kumamoto. They primarily produce rice shochu, or more specifically– Kuma-jochu 熊焼酎. The facilities house a number of large clay pots, which they use for aging some of their shochu. Their rice whiskies are aged in a variety of oak casks– producing a number of unique and complex whiskies.
Other Fukano Whisky Posts
 6000 |
 Vault Reserve 2 |
 Fukano Shuzo |
 Jikan |
 Vault Reserve 1 |
Fukano Whisky Label Translation
Hitoyoshi Basin 人吉盆地
Kumamoto 熊本 Kuma-jochu 熊焼酎
Kuma River 球磨川
Raise Your Japanese Whisky IQ with Our Complete Guide
Follow the Japanese Bar on Social Media
Connect with our latest posts, the newest Japanese beverage info, and get exclusive promotional offers. Level-up your Japanese whisky IQ!