About Suntory Hibiki Japanese Harmony Whisky 2021 Limited Edition Design
In February 1899, Shinjiro Torii opened a store in Osaka, Japan that traded in imported wines. Within a decade, Torii began producing his own sweet grape wine called Akadama Port Wine, which became wildly popular throughout the country. In 1923, Torri — fascinated by whisky his entire life — decided to expand his business and began construction of the Yamazaki Distillery, Japan's first-ever whisky distillery.Although inspired by traditional Scottish distilleries, Torii envisioned a uniquely Japanese approach to whisky and chose a location for his distillery that offered a climate and terrain that were completely different than those of Scotland. Nestled on the periphery of Kyoto, Yamazaki Distillery is situated at the confluence of three rivers — the Katsura, Uji, and Kizu — that provide the warm, damp environment ideal for the production and maturation of whisky.Fifty years after the construction of Yamazaki Distillery, Keizo Saji inherited his father's vision and constructed Suntory's second distillery. Situated amidst the deep forests of Mount Kaikomagatake in Japan's southern Alps, the Hakushu Distillery enjoys a unique microclimate as a result of being surrounded by nearly 6,000 varieties of plants and thousand-year-old granite rocks.Hibiki Japanese Harmony Whisky is crafted from a blend of more than 12 unique grain and malt whiskies produced at Suntory’s Yamazaki, Hakushu, and Chita distilleries. The blend, which was developed by master blender Shingo Torii and chief blender Shinji Fukuyo, is composed of five key styles — Chita grain whiskey, which serves as the “broth,†malt whiskies aged in American oak casks, sherry casks, Mizunara (Japanese oak) casks, and finally a smoky malt whisky which adds hidden complexity to the blend.Each bottle of Hibiki Japanese Harmony Whisky is crafted with 24 facets that represent the 24 seasons of the Japanese lunar calendar. The 2021 Limited Edition takes the design further, paying tribute to the Ryusui-Hyakka (One-Hundred Flowers and Flowing Water). It's a striking design, depicting the various blossoms of the Japanese 24 seasons, a stream of water flowing through them.Grab your bottle of this Japanese whisky with a limited-edition design!
About Japanese Whisky
Although maybe not be the first Spirit you would think of when Japan is mentioned; the Japanese make one of the best types of whisky in the world. It’s heavily influenced by scotch but with smoother and delicate notes.
The history of the Japanese whisky is not even a century old, but in this short time, the Japanese blended and single malts have taken over the world by storm and can easily go against their whisk(e)y counterparts from across the globe.