Founded by Ichiro Akuto, the grandson of the founder of the Hanyu distillery, Chichibu has been in operation since 2008. It is not only the first Japanese single malt distillery since Hakushu but also one of the most praised by enthusiasts. The Ichiro’s Malt brand was created in 2005 and rose to fame after bottling the last casks of Hanyu, most notably the highly sought-after Cards bottlings. Today it offers a wide variety of whiskies. The distillery is home to the last casks of Karuizawa, Kawasaki and Hanyu.

A blend created by Ichiro Akuto, the famous founder of the Japanese distillery Chichibu, which of course features in the blend. It is more specifically a World Blend, meaning it contains whiskies from several countries. In a country where brands had often been less than forthcoming about the contents of its blends, this move towards increased transparency was welcome.