The sale of Akkeshi Blended Whisky ‘Shosho’ to successful lottery-ticket holders began on August 28 at the “Akkeshi Gourmet Park Conchiglie”, a Michi-no-Eki (roadside rest area) in the town of Akkeshi in the Kushiro region of eastern Hokkaido. The whisky is a new product of the Akkeshi Distillery, a whisky producer in the town. To prevent the whisky being sold on for a higher price, the sales method was changed from the previous general sale to a lottery method, and just 60 bottles went on sale. The number of applicants was 12 times the number of bottles available.

The fourth in the ‘24 Seasons’ series in which Akkeshi Whisky can be enjoyed throughout the year, 700 ml bottles cost 11,000 yen, and approximately 10,000 bottles will be sold at department stores and the like throughout Japan.

Akkeshi Distillery’s products are internationally acclaimed and have received Grand Prix awards at alcohol expos in the US and UK, and often fetch high prices at on-line auctions. In the past, long queues formed at Conchiglie from early in the morning on the day products went on sale, and people were often found selling bottles at on-line auctions soon after. As a result, the sales method was altered to the lottery method often used by department stores “to enable the whisky to be drunk by local people.”

“It’s a treasure that I’ve been able to purchase for the first time. I’ll put it on show in my room for two or three years before I drink it,” said an excited Mr. Tada, a resident of the town who arrived with a ticket that allows him to make the purchase.