Yamazaki Distillery was founded in 1923 by Shinjiro Torii as Japan’s first commercial malt whisky distillery.
Yamazaki was established in Shimamoto, near Kyoto, by the founder of Kotobukiya, the company later known as Suntory. Torii selected the site partly because its water and surrounding environment were considered suitable for whisky production. The distillery became central to the development of Japanese whisky.
Yamazaki’s first commercial whisky was produced after years of experimentation and was released in 1929 as Suntory Shirofuda. Japanese producers initially studied Scottish methods, but they developed their own approaches to blending, still shapes, yeast, and cask maturation.
Yamazaki is best known for single malt whisky made at the distillery. It should not be confused with Hakushu, another Suntory malt distillery founded later, or Yoichi, the Hokkaido distillery established by Masataka Taketsuru.