Hibiki 35 Year in a hand-painted Kutani porcelain bottle, released by Suntory on 29 November 2016 for the Japanese market. It was one of a pair of 35-year-old editions that year, each limited to 150 bottles and bottled at 47% without chill filtration.
About This Whisky
Suntory issued the two 2016 editions to mark 400 years of porcelain making in Japan. One was dressed in Arita ware, and this one in Kutani, the overglaze-enamelled porcelain of old Kaga province in today's Ishikawa Prefecture. The cylindrical bottle is painted with peonies, a sign of wealth and good fortune, and butterflies, which stand for long life. Inside is a blend of malt and grain whiskies aged at least 35 years in sherry, bourbon and Mizunara casks. At 47% it is noticeably stronger than most Hibiki. The bottle comes in a wooden case, with a Japanese cloth wrap, cord and a distillery booklet.
Tasting Profile
- Nose: Ripe fruit, vanilla and honey, with old leather and a thread of sandalwood.
- Palate: A careful balance of sweet and tart, with dried fig, orange marmalade and polished oak running through it.
- Finish: Refined and long, with the incense-like lift of Mizunara oak at the close.
Serving & Food
Pour into a stemmed nosing glass at room temperature and give it time in the glass. A single drop of water will soften the 47% without flattening it. Pair with Iberico ham, lightly salted roasted almonds, or dark chocolate with yuzu.
How to Enjoy
Drinkers and collectors of old Suntory blends, and anyone drawn to Kutani porcelain as an art form.
Product Details
Producer: House of Suntory
Style: Blended Japanese whisky
Age Statement: 35 years old
Edition: Kutani ceramic 2016 edition (peony and butterfly design)
Released: 29 November 2016
Edition Size: 150 bottles
Cask: Sherry, bourbon and Mizunara casks
ABV: 47%
Filtration: Non-chill filtered
Country: Japan
Volume: 700mL
About the Distillery
Suntory's whisky story starts at Yamazaki, between Kyoto and Osaka, which the company describes as Japan's oldest malt whisky distillery. Hakushu, a forest distillery in the Southern Japanese Alps, gives a greener, lighter malt, while Chita on the coast near Nagoya makes the grain whisky that ties the blends together.
A Hibiki blend draws on all three. Having so many malt styles and cask types under one roof is what lets the blenders build a whisky like this 35-year-old from long-aged stock that no single distillery could supply alone.