Mars Shinshu Iwai 45 Whisky

Mars Shinshu Iwai 45 is a blended Japanese whisky from Mars Shinshu — Japan’s highest whisky distillery at 2,600+ feet in the Nagano Alps. The ‘45’ refers to the bottling proof (45% ABV), positioning this expression at a higher strength than the standard Iwai Tradition. Named for Kiichiro Iwai, the pre-war whisky-making mentor who guided the Mars project.

The Hombo family has been distilling shochu for more than a century and added whisky to their repertoire in 1949 with the help of Kiichiro Iwai. After originally producing in Kagoshima, the family moved the distillery in 1984 to the cool, soft-water mountain setting of Miyada village in southern Nagano Prefecture.

Specs

• Distillery: Mars Shinshu, Miyada Village, Nagano, Japan (est. 1949; relocated 1984)
• Style: Japanese Blended Whisky — Iwai 45
• ABV: 45%
• Size: 750ml

Browse the full Mars Shinshu collection at Wooden Cork.