Which was Japan's first commercial whisky distillery, and when was it established?

Haha, this question really gets to the "beginning" of Japanese whisky!

The first commercial whisky distillery in Japan was the Yamazaki Distillery.

Its construction was started in 1923 by Shinjiro Torii, the founder of Suntory.

Simply put, at that time, Shinjiro Torii had a dream: to create a whisky in Japan that truly suited the Japanese palate. To achieve this dream, he specifically invited Masataka Taketsuru, known as the "Father of Japanese Whisky." Taketsuru had just returned from studying in Scotland, bringing back the most authentic whisky-making techniques.

Together, they chose Yamazaki as the location because of its exceptionally pure water (it's one of Japan's 100 famous waters) and a climate similar to some regions in Scotland, making it ideal for whisky maturation.

So, while the distillery was built in 1923, their first whisky, "Shirofuda," was released a few years later in 1929. It's fair to say that the entire history of Japanese whisky began with the Yamazaki Distillery.