Suntory ‘Wa-Kyo’ Blended Whisky for Shinanoya
Post by Stefan Van Eycken, Tokyo
Towards the end of last year, we unveiled that the good folk at Shinanoya were about to release an extraordinary blended whisky crafted by Suntory chief blender Shinji Fukuyo. It’s been 6 years since Shinanoya last released a Suntory exclusive bottling, so it’s a bit of an understatement to say that this is an eagerly anticipated release. The blend is composed around malt matured in mizunara casks and it’s called “Wa-Kyo” (which roughly translates as ‘Japanese harmony/resonance’).
“Wa-Kyo” will officially go on sale this weekend, and is expected to sell out instantly. This partly has to do with a fact that a large part of the outturn (which is 530 bottles, bottled at 43%abv) has been reserved by pre-orders. (People attending the Chichibu Whisky Matsuri last weekend had the chance to sign up in advance for a bottle… and since 1,400 people flocked to the festival, it’s easy to understand why there would be very few bottles left.) It’s priced at 36,900 yen plus tax. As is the case with Japanese releases lately, the price won’t be an obstacle. The competition of fellow Japanese-whisky aficionados will be!
Towards the end of last year, we unveiled that the good folk at Shinanoya were about to release an extraordinary blended whisky crafted by Suntory chief blender Shinji Fukuyo. It’s been 6 years since Shinanoya last released a Suntory exclusive bottling, so it’s a bit of an understatement to say that this is an eagerly anticipated release. The blend is composed around malt matured in mizunara casks and it’s called “Wa-Kyo” (which roughly translates as ‘Japanese harmony/resonance’).
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