Niigata Kameda Distillery wins World's Best at WWA with pre-maturation new make

A young whisky distillery in Niigata Prefecture, on the Sea of Japan coast in the north-west of the country, has once again been recognised on the world stage. Niigata Kameda Distillery’s “Niigata Kameda New Pot Peated 2026 EDITION” has won the World’s Best award in the New Make & Young Spirits category at the World Whiskies Awards (WWA) 2026, the international whisky competition. It is the distillery’s second World’s Best award, following the first in 2023. On 30 July, the management of the operating company reported the win to Hideyo Hanasaki, Governor of Niigata Prefecture.

A category judging spirit before maturation

“New pot” (also known as new make) is the clear, colourless spirit that has just been distilled and has not yet been put into a cask. In Europe, whisky normally has to be matured in casks for at least three years before it can be called whisky. For that reason, opinion is divided on how spirit before maturation should be judged. Hiroyuki Doda, a director of the operating company, says the distillery aims for depth of flavour from the new-make stage. He says he believes that a spirit that tastes good before maturation will also taste good after it. The winning peated expression is made by burning peat when drying the malted barley, which gives it a smoky aroma. The distillery’s spirits are generally characterised by sweetness and a long finish.

A craft distillery born from a seal maker

The distillery is run by Otani Co., Ltd., based in Konan Ward, Niigata City. Its core business is making seals (hanko), and in 2021 it began making whisky, centred on single malt. It first entered the WWA in 2022 and has won awards for five years in a row since. This year it also took the top award in Japan-only categories for “Cask Strength Sherry Brandy” and “Sweet & Peated”, and a Silver for “Cask Strength Sherry Cask Finish”. In the report to the governor, the company also presented products made with Niigata-grown barley and plans for a new distillery in Myoko, a mountain town in the prefecture. Even so, Mr Doda says it is “still only the starting point”, and names winning high praise for matured whisky as the next goal.

How to enjoy it in Europe

Most Japanese craft whiskies are still short on maturation, which is part of the appeal, as the character of the spirit tends to come through directly. If you find a distillery like Niigata Kameda that releases both new make and matured expressions, it is worth tasting them side by side. Without the colour and aroma that come from the cask, the flavour of the malt and peat themselves is easier to make out. Pour the new make at room temperature into a small tulip-shaped glass and add a few drops of water, and the sweetness and smoke may open up. Comparing it with the matured version makes it easier to see how the cask changes the taste.