Masataka Taketsuru (1894–1979) was a Japanese entrepreneur and whisky distiller. Born into a sake-brewing family in Takehara, Hiroshima, he traveled to Scotland in 1918, where he studied chemistry and learned whisky production through practical training at distilleries. After returning to Japan, he helped build the Yamazaki Distillery and produce authentic Japanese whisky before establishing Dai Nippon Kaju in 1934 and constructing the Yoichi Distillery in Hokkaido. The company later became Nikka Whisky, and his autobiography “Whisky to Watashi” recounts his studies in Scotland and his efforts to establish whisky-making in Japan.
