The Japanese have received great acclaim recently for their ever expanding range of single malt whiskies. These are produced just like any single malt whisky, distilled from nothing other than yeast, water and malted barley at a single distillery before a maturation of at least three years and a day in oak casks. There are two main brands that own Japanese distilleries: Nikka and Suntory, founded by Masataka Taketsuru and Shinjiro Torii respectively.