Sakurao puts the 'JW' Japanese whisky mark on every product

Sakurao Brewery & Distillery (Sakurao B&D), a drinks maker in Hatsukaichi, Hiroshima Prefecture, has been switching the labels of all its whisky products to carry the “JW (Japanese Whisky) logo mark” since April 2026. Only the label design changes; the contents and quality stay the same. It is a small mark, but it bears directly on a problem facing Japan’s whisky industry: the reliability of labelling.

A “JW” mark modelled on a cask head

In 2021 the Japan Spirits & Liqueurs Makers Association (JSLMA) set a voluntary standard for using the name “Japanese whisky”. Raw materials are limited to malted and other grains and water drawn in Japan. Saccharification, fermentation and distillation must all take place at distilleries in Japan, and the spirit must be matured in Japan for at least three years in wooden casks of 700 litres or less, then bottled in Japan at a minimum of 40% ABV. That is a level of strictness close to the rules for Scotch whisky. The standard came fully into force in April 2024, but it is not binding on companies that do not belong to the association. So on 27 March 2025 the JW logo mark was introduced, modelled on a cask head (the round board fitted to each end of a cask). Only products that meet the standard may display it, with the aim of letting shoppers recognise them at a glance on the shelf.

Matured by the Seto Inland Sea and in a mountain tunnel

Founded in 1918, Sakurao B&D has its head office and distillery at Sakurao, on the Seto Inland Sea. The new-make spirit produced here is shaped by sea breezes and is known for a showy, fruit-like (estery) aroma. Its other maturation site is the “Togouchi Tunnel” in the Chugoku Mountains. A railway tunnel of about 387 metres that was left unfinished, it has been repurposed and holds a steady temperature of around 14°C and humidity of around 80% all year round, conditions close to those of the Scottish Highlands. Spirit matured here in bourbon casks is said to take on delicate vanilla and apple notes rather than an overpowering cask character. The logo will appear across the whole range: the single malts “Sakurao” and “Togouchi”, the blends “Togouchi PREMIUM”, “Togouchi RUM CASK FINISH” and “SOGAINI”, and even the highball cans.

A “breakwater” until the law catches up

Behind the move lies the fact that products made simply by bottling in Japan bulk spirit (tank-sized lots of unbottled spirit) imported from abroad have been circulating as “made in Japan”. Under Japan’s liquor tax law, a product containing 10% genuine whisky spirit can be sold as “whisky”. The issue was raised in the House of Councillors Budget Committee in March 2026, where the National Tax Agency acknowledged that it is working on a legal definition, following the example of the tightened labelling rules for “Japanese wine” in 2018. Legislation is still expected to take several years. Sakurao B&D entered a capital and business alliance with Mitsui & Co. Global Strategic Studies Institute… no: with Mitsui Bussan Corporate Investment in October 2025 and is accelerating its overseas expansion. Bringing every product, including the affordably priced “SOGAINI”, into line with the standard sends a clear message to buyers abroad.

When choosing a Japanese whisky in Europe, it is worth treating the presence of the JW mark on the label as one guide, rather than relying on the word “Japanese” or the price. Because Sakurao B&D’s labels are being changed over gradually, old and new labels may sit side by side in shops for a while, but the contents are the same. Tasting “Sakurao”, matured by the sea, alongside “Togouchi”, matured in the tunnel, shows how the aroma changes with the maturation environment even from the same maker.

Sources BARREL365, “Japanese whisky’s ‘proof of authenticity’ begins: Sakurao B&D introduces the JW logo mark on all products” https://www.barrel365.com/n2604031/