Kirin Fuji Gotemba Distillery Tour Reviews[photos]-Shizuoka/Japan
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We went to a factory visit at Fuji Gotemba Distillery.(in 2023)
Every distillery has its own good points, and going makes you love it even more, but this Fuji Gotemba Distillery is large in scale, with rich tour content and videos — in a word, stunning.
We happened to be able to arrive earlier than our tour time, so we also enjoyed a paid tasting before the tour.
Here’s a look at how it went.
※For the latest information on English tours and whisky, please check the distillery’s official website.
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What Are the Features of Fuji Gotemba Distillery?
Fuji Gotemba Distillery, run by KIRIN.
It started in 1973, and marks its 50th anniversary in 2023!!
Incorporating Scottish malt techniques and American grain whisky techniques, they make many kinds of whisky.
Being able to make both malt whisky and grain whisky at a single distillery is apparently unique to Fuji Gotemba Distillery.
In a spot 12 km in a straight line from Mt. Fuji, you can drink whisky made from a nature-rich setting and delicious water.
Access/Location
It’s 20 minutes by shuttle bus from Gotemba Station.
You can check the shuttle bus times here.
We arrived at Gotemba Station at 9:23 and took the 9:30 shuttle bus.
As long as you don’t take the wrong exit, it was in a place easy to find right away.
You can apparently also go by regular route bus.
When we boarded there were about eight of us and we could all get on fine, but when there are a lot of people you apparently can’t always get on, so I think it’s good to go early or to also plan for going by city bus.
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Careful Tour Reception
After arriving, right as you enter the building, both those who’ve booked a tour and those who haven’t check in.
It was quite thorough — they carefully guided us through how we came (car or shuttle bus), whether we could drink or not, and even the return shuttle bus times.
We checked in, bought the tour tickets, and went to the shop until the tour time.
Incidentally, for the 11 a.m. tour, it seems many people finish at 12:30 and take the 1 p.m. shuttle bus.
Buying a Limited-Edition Glass / Whisky at the Shop
On the second floor there’s a shop and a paid tasting corner.
We shopped and enjoyed a paid tasting too.
At the shop, we bought a glass, a limited-edition whisky, an eco bag, and a whisky cake.
▲ Tasting glass (3,060 yen), whisky cake (1,500 yen), Fuji 50th Anniversary whisky (21,780 yen), distillery-exclusive whisky (3,650 yen), tote bag (830 yen)
This whisky cake was moist and incredibly delicious. Highly recommended.
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Paid Tasting Is Up to Three Glasses per Person per Day
The paid tasting is set at up to three glasses per person per day (about 20 minutes).
Those who did the paid tasting got a pink bracelet, lol.
You can taste before the tour or after — either is fine.
Since we could come early before the tour, we tasted before the tour.
You can buy soda too. You can drink cheaply, so I’d recommend tasting, finding what you like, and buying it at the shop.
Having drunk the delicious 50th Anniversary bottle, we splurged a little, lol.
The 50th Anniversary bottle is a bit pricey, but it was really delicious.
The Distillery Tour Was on a Different Level
We’ve been to various distillery tours, but Fuji Gotemba Distillery’s facilities are just amazing.
The size of the distillery, of course, but the video introductions were wonderful too — a stunning tour.
I’d love you to go in person to hear the content, but here’s a little introduction with photos.
▲ After the tour, you can have two whiskies (a malt whisky and Riku). We asked when doing the paid tasting and paid-tasted things other than these.
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Enjoy the Forest and Views of Mt. Fuji
At the back of the first floor is Kirin’s forest, and from the third floor, if the weather is good, you can apparently see Mt. Fuji too.
We enjoyed the tour at a leisurely pace.
Summary
At Fuji Gotemba Distillery, there were families coming to the tour too, and it was a very rich tour.
Please do go and visit when you go to Shizuoka.