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Tsukuriwake Selection 2024 Limited Edition
The 2024 Tsukuriwake Selection features four boundary-pushing single malts from the Yamazaki and Hakushu distilleries exploring artisanship through a diversity of making.
Iconic Single Malts
Tsukuriwake is a creative exploration of the diverse whisky making techniques handed down by generations of chief blenders at Suntory Whisky. Our blenders orchestrate each step of the whisky-making process, composing stunning new taste profiles. Raw ingredient selection, peating levels and fermentation, distillation and maturation techniques are expertly balanced to explore the full range of expressions of what a single malt – and Japanese whisky – can be.
A Tribute to Our Diversity of Making
The Yamazaki Golden Promise is composed from Golden Promise barley. First grown in Scotland in the 1960s, this varietal is revered for its flavor and malting characteristics. Combined with aging in American Oak casks, the nuances of the Yamazaki base are accentuated through a malty and rich character, with sweet, fruity and citrus notes.
- Color: Barley gold
- Nose: Reminiscent of a fragrance with sweet malt, vanilla and honey
- Palate: Rich and full with hints of orange marmalade and custard
- Finish: Sweet and fruity with citrus, long and lasting
Islay peat imparts one of scotch whisky’s most distinctive flavors, venerated globally for its distinctive smokiness. The Yamazaki Islay Peated Malt balances the smoky quality with a characteristic sweetness, borne from the unique water and maturation processes that define Yamazaki whisky. This marriage of traditions is especially present on the nose, where gentle smoke meets a hint of biscuit.
- Color: Bright gold
- Nose: Gently smoky with a hint of biscuit
- Palate: Smooth and sweet like brown sugar, followed by citrus of bitter orange
- Finish: Warm, slow and sweetly smoky
Through years of experimentation, our blenders have discovered the secret to the treasures of Mizunara casks: time. A long maturation period imparts unmistakeable spiciness and notes of sandalwood and aloe upon the Yamazaki. As a result, Yamazaki Mizunara Aged 18 Years is a pleasingly complex, rich and elegant whisky, where fruit, spice and wood notes engage to inspire the senses.
- Color: Reddish Amber
- Nose: Rich and elegant top notes of dark cherry, ripe peach with hints of cinnamon and nutmeg
- Palate: Subtly spiced organette with undernotes of Japanese incense
- Finish: Long and lingering, accentuated with clove, sandalwood and hints of dried coconut
The Hakushu Peated Malt Aged 18 Years exemplifies the art of marrying ingredients, techniques and terroir. Throughout our long history of using peated malt, House of Suntory blenders have harnessed Hakushu’s climate to unveil intricate layers of flavor from the peated malt’s robust smoke character. Long maturation catalyzed by Hakushu’s exceptionally pure water reveals a wave of clean smoke, deepening into herbaceous mineral notes and undertones of ripe apples.
- Color: Luminous gold
- Nose: Vibrant with top notes of sage, ripe green apple and hints of ripe pineapple
- Palate: Complex smoke revealing layers of herbal, grapefruit and acacia honey notes
- Finish: Clean smoke that lingers with undernotes of fresh green citrus
How Tsukuriwake Celebrates Diversity in Making
Tsukuriwake explores how changes to each part of the whisky making process can expand the flavor profiles of single malt whisky and increase complexity. In the early stages of the process, choices of malted barley and peating level offer a foundation on which to build exceptional character. Fermentation takes place in either wooden or steel washbacks, while distillation utilizes an astounding range of pot stills – each imparting a different personality on the liquid. Our blenders then select from six types of casks to age the whisky, enabling complex aromas to evolve with the passage of time. The final technique is the art of blending, where our team deftly combines liquids, yielding nuanced and intricate aromas that captivate the nose and palate.
