House of Suntory Reveals Centennial Hibiki 21-Year-Old Whisky and Limited-Edition Hibiki Japanese Harmony Bottle Design

3 0 1.1k

The House of Suntory, marking a century since its founder, Shinjiro Torii, established Japan’s first malt whisky distillery in 1923, has unveiled two additions to its Hibiki whisky range. These releases include the Hibiki 21-Year-Old and a unique bottle design of Hibiki Japanese Harmony as part of their centennial celebration.

Hibiki, introduced in 1989, is renowned for its blend of malt and grain whiskies from Suntory’s distilleries, including Yamazaki, Hakushu, and Chita. The new Hibiki 21-Year-Old prominently features rare Mizunara oak, influencing the whisky’s character.

Chief Blender of Suntory, Shinji Fukuyo, states, “For the limited-edition Hibiki 21-Year-Old, our team crafted a new blend to celebrate our centennial. This whisky showcases our dedication to craftsmanship.”

The centennial label design on the Hibiki 21-Year-Old bottle reflects a Japanese sunrise, symbolizing life, vitality, and the passage of time.

This special whisky, with its tender gold hue, embodies the spirit of “Wa,” offering enticing notes of kumquat, jasmine, and Japanese incense. The palate combines subtle sweetness and floral notes with spiced sandalwood and agarwood. The finish features spiced Mizunara wood. Bottled at 43 percent ABV, it is available globally in select markets with a suggested retail price of $5,000 for a 700-ml. bottle.

Hibiki Japanese Harmony also joins the centennial celebration with a unique bottle design. It includes motifs symbolizing Japan’s changing seasons, and a ‘Kakehashi’ (bridge) signifying a connection between Japan and the world.

The whisky, with an amber hue, offers notes of rose, lychee, rosemary, mature woodiness, and sandalwood. The palate features aromas of honey-like sweetness, candied orange peel, and white chocolate, with a subtle and tender finish with a hint of Mizunara. Bottled at 43 percent ABV, it is available globally in select markets with a suggested retail price of $200 for a 750-ml. bottle.

This centennial release follows the earlier unveiling of the Yamazaki 18 Year Old Mizunara and Hakushu 18 Year Old Peated Malt whiskies. The House of Suntory has also introduced limited 100th-anniversary labels for the flagship Yamazaki 12 Year Old and Hakushu 12 Year Old in select markets.

The House of Suntory welcomes whisky enthusiasts to join its new global membership program, offering benefits like early access to new releases, priority invitations to consumer experiences, distillery news, cultural insights, and more.

La Aurora Introduces Limited-Edition La Aurora Small Batch Line

2 0 972
La Aurora

La Aurora USA, LLC, has announced the upcoming launch of the La Aurora Small Batch line, a limited-edition collection that offers aficionados a taste of Master Blender Manuel Inoa’s creations. The inaugural release, La Aurora Small Batch Lot No. 002, has been aged for 15 years.

Their aging room, typically reserved for the maturation of core products, will now house unique and limited offerings under the Small Batch label. Each release represents an exploration from Manuel Inoa’s past works.

According to Guillermo León, President of La Aurora, “In each blend, Manuel demonstrates his experience, talent, and commitment to providing quality products to both new consumers and cigar aficionados.”

Master Blender Manuel Inoa added, “Small Batch is a series that is very special to me. These cigars will only ever exist in small batches, each featuring distinct tasting notes, with some having been aged up to 19 years. For that reason, we wanted to make all 222 boxes of Lot No. 002 exclusively available to retailers in the U.S. market.”

Small Batch Lot No. 002 is presented in a vintage salomon format (6 1/2 X 50/60). This cigar features a Corojo wrapper paired with a Dominican Republic binder and long-filler leaves from the Dominican Republic and Nicaragua.

Lot No. 002 is designed to provide a delightful 60-minute smoking experience with wood notes throughout. It pairs exceptionally well with strong coffee to kickstart the day or premium rum and cognac for a luxurious evening wind-down.

This limited-edition release will consist of 10 handmade cigars aged for 15 years, packaged in 222 dress boxes. La Aurora Small Batch Lot No. 002 is expected to retail for $13 per cigar or $130 per box, with availability slated for October. Aficionados should act quickly, as this exclusive release is anticipated to sell out swiftly.

The GlenAllachie Distillery Unveils Meikle Tòir, New Range of Peated Single Malt Scotch Whisky

4 0 994

The GlenAllachie Distillery has unveiled its new peated Scotch whisky brand, Meikle Tòir, meaning “big pursuit” in Scottish Gaelic. The distillery has been running a seasonal peated production campaign since 2018, utilizing mainland peat sourced from St. Fergus. The production cycle spans roughly six weeks per year and results in approximately 100,000 Litres of Alcohol annually.

Master Distiller Billy Walker, who took ownership of the distillery in 2017, has fully overseen the launch of this new brand. Meikle Tòir’s core range consists of four different expressions: The Original, The Sherry One, The Chinquapin One, and the limited annual release The Turbo 2023 Edition. Each whisky carries a five-year age statement and was subjected to an extended fermentation period of 160 hours. The whiskies offer varying flavor profiles ranging from sweet spice to smoky earthiness, all without added coloring and non-chill filtered.

The Original 5-year-old expression features aging in first-fill Bourbon barrels, American virgin oak casks, and Rye barrels. The Sherry One undergoes additional maturation in Pedro Ximénez and Oloroso sherry puncheons after an initial period in American oak. The Chinquapin One is first aged in American oak before transferring to Chinquapin virgin oak barrels from Missouri, USA. All core range products have a spirit PPM (Phenol Parts per Million) level of 35. The Turbo 2023 Edition, a super-limited bottling, has a spirit PPM of 71 and is the result of aging in American virgin oak and Oloroso sherry hogsheads.

Billy Walker said about the launch, “Five years in the making, it represents the culmination of our endeavours since we took over the reins at the distillery. One of the key decisions was to significantly extend the fermentation period to 160 hours, creating thick, ester-rich distillate.”

The UK Retail Recommended Selling Prices (RRSP) for Meikle Tòir start at £50. The packaging for the new brand was created with environmental considerations, exclusively working with UK-based packaging suppliers. The new brand will be showcased at a series of tastings across Scotland, concluding at The Whisky Exchange Show in London. Availability will expand globally starting today.

, ,

General Cigar Co. and Flint Knoll Winery Release Barrel-Aged Macanudo Estate Reserve Flint Knoll No. 2

4 0 873

General Cigar Co. and Napa Valley’s Flint Knoll Winery are back with the Macanudo Estate Reserve Flint Knoll No. 2, a unique cigar blend aged in wine barrels. Retaining the blend of its debut release, this cigar features a Connecticut-seed wrapper from Ecuador and a Connecticut broadleaf binder, aged in the barrels used for Flint Knoll’s 2019 Royal Appointment Cabernet Sauvignon. The additional fill comprises Brazilian mata fina, Dominican olor, an undisclosed varietal from Nicaragua’s Jalapa region, and Dominican piloto cubano.

The 2019 growing season in Napa Valley marked exceptional conditions, fostering a wine noted for its complexity and spice. These characteristics have been infused into the tobacco through the barrel aging process, delivering a spicier smoking experience compared to the original release. The binder leaf’s aging in French Oak barrels has imparted flavors of creamy vanilla, toasted almonds, dark currants, and cedar to the Macanudo Estate Reserve Flint Knoll No. 2.

Available in Toro (6 x 54) and Churchill (7 x 52) sizes, priced at $19.99 and $21.99 respectively, these cigars have been meticulously crafted to present an unmatched smoking experience. The Macanudo Estate Reserve Flint Knoll No. 2 is set to ship to stores on October 2. The total number of cigars available for this release, however, remains undisclosed.

Basil Hayden Introduces New Malted Rye Whiskey

4 0 583

Basil Hayden is enhancing its diverse whiskey portfolio with the addition of a new permanent expression, Basil Hayden Malted Rye. This new expression presents a fresh entrant into the rye category, offering a unique gentleness unusual for rye whiskey, owing to a special malting process.

Crafting the Malted Rye

Freddie Noe, the eighth-generation master distiller, crafted this unique release. The distinctive malting process used in the production transforms the rye grain, resulting in a milder spice with understated sweet and floral notes. This innovation highlights the potential diversity in whiskey flavors and presents a more refined facet of rye. The resultant whiskey balances between Basil Hayden’s hallmark smooth taste profile and the traditional spicier notes of rye.

In Freddie Noe’s words, Basil Hayden Malted Rye “introduces an entirely new flavor profile within the whiskey category,” offering an “unexpected softness and approachability.”

Tasting Notes

With a light amber hue, the 100% malted rye mash bill blends diverse flavors, creating a whiskey with an elegant floral aroma and soft notes of vanilla and toasted rye. The whiskey concludes with a warm spice finish. Bottled at 80 proof, the Malted Rye promises a balanced and refined drinking experience, best enjoyed neat to fully appreciate the mash bill’s nuances.

Availability

Set to grace the shelves nationwide in September 2023, Basil Hayden Malted Rye arrives just in time for the holiday season. It is priced at $59.99 for a 750mL bottle, presenting an accessible way for enthusiasts to explore this new expression of rye whiskey.

«‹ 19 20 21 22›»