A Chosen Cask, Depth in Peat
- Ahead of bottling Tsunuki Gotoh, six casks were presented to a tasting panel from Tokyu Hotels, including Sherry, Mizunara, Cognac, Rum, and others. Among the members was Katsuya Konishi, bartender at the French dining bar Nananoichi in THE HOTEL HIGASHIYAMA.
“While the 2024 Komagatake Gotoh was created for broader enjoyment, this time we deliberately steered toward connoisseurs,”
Konishi recalls.
The chosen cask was matured for seven years in a Cognac barrel, peated at 50 ppm, and bottled at cask strength, 62%.
“The decisive factor was its striking individuality,”
says Konishi.
Peat—moss and grasses compressed over millennia—was once burned in Scotland to dry malted barley, its smoke imparting whisky’s signature smokiness. Today, peat is valued less as fuel and more as a source of aroma. Its strength is measured in ppm (parts per million).
“Even the smoky whiskies of Islay, Scotland, typically measure 25–35 ppm, rarely exceeding 40. At 50 ppm, this is exceptionally high. Those who know Laphroaig or Lagavulin will find Tsunuki Gotoh a step beyond,”
Konishi explains. 
Layers of Aroma at 62%
- How best to enjoy such individuality? Konishi recommends beginning with the aroma.
“Behind the powerful smoke lie notes of raspberry and plum, with a fleeting elegance from the Cognac cask.”
At 62% cask strength—whisky drawn straight from the barrel without dilution—the initial impact on the palate is undeniably powerful.
“But as you add just a few drops of water at a time, the whisky begins to open up. The smoke drifts into the background, while the sweetness of the cask and layers of fruit come forward,”
says Konishi.
“The breadth of transformation is fascinating. At 58%, 55%, and 53%, the red fruits come forward. Each dilution brings a new expression, like uncovering layers of fragrance. Exploring those layers is what makes this cask so remarkable.” 
A Whisky that Invites Conversation
- Despite its strength, Konishi encourages even those new to whisky to try Tsunuki Gotoh.
“Peat is sometimes described as ‘medicinal’ or ‘smoky,’ and 62% can feel daunting. But when I suggest adding a little water, guests are surprised—‘Oh, the aroma has changed,’ or ‘It’s sweeter now.’ At that moment, the whisky becomes their own. Such exchanges can only happen at the bar.”
At Nananoichi, Konishi also proposes a dining style:
“We serve Tsunuki Gotoh frozen, then lengthened with soda. Suppressing the aroma softens the palate, allowing the whisky to show a fresh face alongside a meal.”
Behind the Counter
A Bartender’s Journey
Through the Eyes of Katsuya Konishi
A Childhood Spark
-
A bartender at the counter is not merely filling glasses. Each pour weaves atmosphere, rhythm, and conversation. For Konishi, his journey began as a boy.
Born in Tokyo and raised in Kyoto, Konishi’s earliest memory is of a hotel bar he entered with his father.
“The staff in white uniforms moving so crisply left an indelible mark. Of course, I only had juice,”
he laughs.
That memory grew into a desire to work in hotels. As a university student, he gathered his courage and stepped alone into a Kyoto bar.
“With a single banknote in my pocket, I nervously ordered a gin and tonic and simply watched the bartender. At nearby tables, professors and gentlemen drank with ease. I thought, there’s a whole world here, and I was utterly captivated.”
Soon after, Konishi began working part-time at a hotel restaurant, and after each shift would slip into bars, asking, “Please let me learn.”
In 2013, he joined Kyoto Tokyu Hotel as a new graduate, gaining experience in both restaurants and bars. Gradually, he gravitated toward the counter, and in 2022 became part of the opening team of THE HOTEL HIGASHIYAMA KYOTO TOKYU, A Pan Pacific Hotel. For him, time at the bar is irreplaceable. 
Craft Forged in Competition
- Competitions also shaped his journey.
“At 24, I joined the Hotel Barmen’s Association (HBA). That year, I saw bartenders performing before 500–600 people. The exhilaration was overwhelming.”
From then until the age of 29, he entered three competitions each year, honing his craft tirelessly. A milestone came in 2015, when he won the Hard Cider Division at the 8th HBA Junior Cocktail Competition, Kirin Cup & Cocktail Festival.
Years later in New York, another revelation awaited.
“The bar wasn’t beautiful—the counter was cluttered, the bartender wore rubber gloves. But the Negroni I was served was astonishingly good.”
A classic of gin, Campari, and sweet vermouth, the Negroni showed him something essential:
“It’s not just technique. The maker’s presence, the music, the light—everything in the space shapes that one glass.”
Since then, Konishi’s awareness of the importance of creating atmosphere has only deepened. 
A Place to Belong
- “For guests, the bar should feel like a place to belong. That is what I aim to create. Above all, I consider music to be vital.”
At Nananoichi, he even plays analogue records, spending days off searching for vinyl.
And the ideal bartender?
“The guest is always the protagonist. I want to be the person who is simply there—engaging when invited, quiet when not, keeping the right distance. If I can help make an evening the quiet highlight of someone’s journey, leaving a single glass etched in memory, that is my greatest joy.”
His words linger like the aroma of whisky—subtle, profound, and enduring.
From the nature of Tsunuki to a quiet conversation in Kyoto, amber sways in the glass as time flows unhurried.
Katsuya Konishi
- Bartender, Nananoichi
THE HOTEL HIGASHIYAMA KYOTO TOKYU, A Pan Pacific Hotel
Born in Tokyo, 1990
Joined Kyoto Tokyu Hotel in 2013
Since 2022, he has been a bartender at THE HOTEL HIGASHIYAMA.
Awards
Winner, Hard Cider Division, 8th HBA Junior Cocktail Competition, Kirin Cup & Cocktail Festival 2015
Grand Prix, 1st Tokyu Hotels Cocktail Competition 2024
Numerous other distinctions 
Tsunuki Gotoh
- Tokyu Hotels Original Release
TSUNUKI Single Malt Japanese Whisky Special Edition Gotoh
Tsunuki Gotoh will be available starting November 1, 2025, at the bars of 15 Tokyu Hotels nationwide.
(Price from ¥2,700 per shot, service charge and tax included.) 
