Wizards of Whisky: Masataka Taketsuru

“Masataka Taketsuru is the founder of Nikka Whisky, one of the leading Japanese whisky brands. He was born in Hiroshima, Japan in 1894 and developed an interest in whisky while studying organic chemistry at the University of Glasgow in Scotland.

After completing his studies, Taketsuru returned to Japan and began working for the Kotobukiya company (now Suntory), where he was tasked with building a whisky distillery. In 1934, he left Kotobukiya and founded his own company, which he named Nikka Whisky.

Taketsuru was a pioneer of Japanese whisky, and his passion and dedication to the craft helped establish the reputation of Japanese whisky as some of the best in the world. He spent many years perfecting his craft, traveling to Scotland to learn about whisky-making techniques and experimenting with different blends and flavours.

Known as the father of Japanese whisky, Taketsuru’s legacy lives on through Nikka Whisky, which continues to produce high-quality Japanese whisky using traditional methods and the same attention to detail that Taketsuru was known for. (Credits – nikka.com/japandistilled.com)”