The first place I visited after arriving in Karuizawa was the Mercian Museum. Those who know Mercian will know it as a brand of inexpensive Japanese wine. The museum is run by Kirin, famous for its beer, and besides the museum it also operates a restaurant/café and a distillery. Of course, my real goal that day was visiting the single malt whisky distillery. While researching places worth seeing in Karuizawa, I found out there was a whisky distillery here, and also that the museum would close at the end of this summer season. Karuizawa whisky lags behind other whiskies in sales, but Japanese whisky has such a good reputation to begin with, and since this was my last chance to visit, I decided to go even though my trip was short.
The main gate
From Karuizawa Shinkansen station, you take the local line right next door (Shinano Railway) three stops to Miyota Station, then walk about 10 minutes. It wasn’t as hard to find as I expected. Well… since this is its last year, I guess detailed directions aren’t really needed.
A cozy little landscaped forest
It was nicely done up, with an atmosphere straight out of a fairy tale.
The Italian restaurant.
The distillery tours only run once an hour, so I used the 30 minutes or so I had to spare to have lunch at an Italian restaurant called Pittore. Wherever you are, you have to make sure you eat well.
Chilled tomato and vegetable soup
True to Nagano Prefecture’s reputation for great vegetables, out came a cool, clean-tasting chilled soup. It seems to be a chain, but it was pretty good. The crunchy fresh cucumber was the highlight.
I ordered pasta too, but it didn’t come before the distillery tour started, so I had to dash out.
The entrance to the warehouses
Inside, photography is banned because it’s a trade secret. So there was a still, but I couldn’t take a picture of it. Apparently the stills haven’t been running for two years. They imported peated malt from Scotland and distilled it here. Just thinking about it, that doesn’t seem very cost-effective. I guess that’s why it’s closing. By the way, in Japan peat is found in Hokkaido, so Nikka Whisky is apparently Japanese right down to its raw materials.
Casks set out in front of the warehouse
The whisky warehouse really is right in the middle of the forest.
We heard about the history and looked around inside the warehouse.
There were quite a lot more people on the tour than I expected.
Photos are officially banned, but…
This was roughly what it looked like. It goes without saying, but they said every cask and every age tastes different.
The distillery has a really lovely atmosphere.
It’s in a forest on a highland plateau, with fog all year round, so it feels like the perfect place to make a clear, clean spirit.
A view of the warehouses
I was really glad I came. It made me think that maybe it’s nature that completes the flavor of a single malt whisky. Someday I’ll have to visit the distilleries in Scotland too.
Eggplant pasta in tomato sauce
When I hurried back to the restaurant after the short tour, my companion had eaten half and saved the rest for me. It’s only chain-restaurant level, but the ingredients are good, so it was tasty.
Coffee
The cup was pretty.
A work called “Daydream”
After the meal we took a short stroll around the museum grounds, and found this piece. Kind of bizarre. Maybe it means this is what happens when you drink in the daytime?
The things I picked up that day.
There were so many kinds of whisky that I agonized over what to buy. I got a small bottle of 21-year-old cask strength whisky at a whopping 64.9% ABV, and a whisky aged 16 years in oak casks that had held red wine, which tastes a lot like brandy (the Rouge Cask). And I finally bought a sommelier knife, too, since it was on sale at half price… The 21-year-old was very sweet despite its strength, so it was a big hit and it’s already all gone. If I’d known it would be this popular, I’d have brought back a bigger bottle.
Countryside scenery
I took this on the way from the museum to Miyota Station.
There was a festival going on in front of the station, too.
Little ballerinas came out and danced. I didn’t have time, so I had to head straight back.
Then, back at Karuizawa Station, I went straight to the outlets to shop.
Outlet shopping is surely one of the great joys of travel. There were more bargains than I expected, so I took the chance to buy all my winter clothes, too. Lugging it all home nearly killed me, though.
This is roughly what the outlet mall looks like.
It’s right next to the Karuizawa Prince Hotel.
A lovely place that also has a golf course.
I wish the weather had been a bit clearer, but you can’t ask for everything. Then again, considering that Korea got hit by torrential rain and serious damage after I left for Japan, I should be grateful for weather like this.