JAL showcases Oita's rising star Kuju on international flights

Japan Airlines (JAL) continues its series introducing whiskies from small craft distilleries across Japan in its inflight sales on international routes. The 15th instalment features “Single Malt Kuju JAL EXCLUSIVE 2026”, made by Kuju Distillery in Oita Prefecture on the island of Kyushu. It was sold in limited numbers on international flights departing between 1 and 31 May 2026. A young distillery only a few years old has thus been presented to travellers from around the world at 10,000 metres.

A young distillery born of a soy sauce-brewing family business

Kuju Distillery is located in Kuju, Taketa, Oita Prefecture, on Kyushu, the island in the south-west of Japan. It sits at the foot of the Kuju mountain range, known as the “roof of Kyushu”. The operator, Tsuzaki Shoji, is a company that has made soy sauce and sold sake since the Taisho era (1912–1926), and it opened the distillery in 2021 to realise a long-cherished plan. It uses pot stills made by Forsyths of Scotland. “Kuju New Born”, released the year after the distillery was completed, won an award in the Young Spirits category of the international competition World Whiskies Awards (WWA), and has drawn the attention of whisky enthusiasts abroad since the stage of its briefly matured new-make spirit.

A non-peated bottle marrying bourbon casks and new casks

This bottle is a blend of spirit matured for three years in first-fill bourbon casks (casks used for the first time for maturing whisky after emptying their bourbon) and spirit matured in new American oak casks. It is a non-peated style, in which the malt is not dried over peat smoke, so it has no smokiness. The sweetness typical of bourbon casks is joined by the woody aroma of new oak, and the whisky is described as having a refreshing, orange-like fruitiness and a sweet, pleasant finish. On board, the 700 ml bottle was sold to First and Business Class passengers for 21,000 yen (up to two bottles per person per flight), and the 200 ml bottle to all passengers on international flights for 7,000 yen.

Inflight sales as a “showcase”

Japanese craft whisky is produced in small quantities, and opportunities to see it abroad are still limited. Inflight sales on international routes give distilleries with less name recognition than the big brands a place where travellers from around the world can pick up their bottles directly. JAL has now run this series 15 times, and it is becoming established as a way of introducing new regional producers overseas.

This limited bottle’s May sales period has already ended, so it will be hard for European readers to get hold of, but the name “Kuju” is worth remembering. If you come across it among the offerings of specialist whisky shops or importers of Japanese whisky, look out for the bourbon-cask sweetness and citrus aroma, which set it apart from a smoky Scotch. Try it neat first, then with a few drops of water, which may open up the fruitiness of the young spirit. Tasting how a recently founded distillery tastes “right now” is part of the pleasure of following new producers.