Following the recent news that Suntory will discontinue the Hibiki 17-Year-Old in Japan from September, Hasumi Ozawa, a member of the Suntory PR team, has confirmed that a new, exciting Hibiki whisky expression, named 'Blender's Choice', will be added to the company's portfolio, launching domestically on September 4th, 2018. Photo: SuntoryThe new expression is the third no-age statement (NAS) whisky to be added to the Hibiki core range, alongside the Hibiki Japanese Harmony and Hibiki Japanese Harmony Master’s Select. 'The Hibiki Blender's Choice will be under a limited allocation,' Ozawa says, so bottle numbers aren't expected to be huge. In 2015, years before the Hibiki 17 and Hakushu 12 discontinuations were announced, the Hibiki 12-Year-Old was also removed from the Suntory core line-up. Suntory stresses that the aged Hibiki and Hakushu expressions may return in the years to come, but judging by the depth of the Hibiki Japanese Harmony Master's Select, the new Blender's Choice is expected to be a worthy addition to the Hibiki range.

Source: Forbes June 01, 2018 22:00 UTC