Hibiki 21 Year Old Ceramic Arita Decanter 2009 Release

Suntory are one of the founding fathers of Japanese whisky, established by Shinjirō Torii in 1899 as a wine store in Osaka. The venture was hugely successful, and the company was renamed Kotobukiya in 1921, which built its first distillery three years later, Yamazaki. The distillery produced both malt and grain whiskies which the company blended together, releasing its first Suntory White Label in 1929, the resulting popularity of which saw the firm renamed after it 1963. Expansion in the next decade saw the company move its grain production to a new Chita distillery in 1972, and open a second malt distillery, Hakushu, the following year. Suntory today has a large stake in both the bourbon and Scotch whisky industry, but remains at the forefront of its native whisky market too.

This is Suntory's most popular blend, the Hibiki. Launched in 1989, it contains malt whisky from Yamazaki and Hakushu, and grain from the Chita distillery. It was developed by fourth generation chief blender Shinji Fukuyo with production overseen by third generation master blender and great-grandson of the founder, Shingo Torii, and is typically presented in a bottle with 24 facets representing the 24 seasons of the Japanese lunar calendar. Unprecedented demand for Japanese whiskies in recent years have seen the discontinuation of most age-statements, and only the 21 year old and a premium 30 year old remain part of the Hibiki portfolio.

The Arita and Kutani ceramic decanters were an annual limited 21 year old release from Suntory, bottled between 2001 and 2014. Arita and Kutani are the pre-eminent ceramic houses in Japan, both located on the island of Kyushu. Each year, both houses design a decanter each, and they are all hand-painted.

This is the Arita 2009 release, bottled "for the year 2010."