The owner of Laphroaig and Bowmore has announced a new blended whisky made up of “the very best quality whiskies from distilleries across the Highlands, islands and lowlands of Scotland”.
Beam Suntory, also owner of Teacher’s, said drawing from this handful of the finest Scotch distilleries from Beam Suntory and its partners at Edrington, owners of The Macallan, The Glenrothes and Highland Park, the new whisky “celebrates the role of terroir and the production traditions of Scotland’s distilleries”.
Beam Suntory, US-founded subsidiary of the Japanese company Suntory, said Calum Fraser, its chief blender for Scotch, tested nearly 200 different whisky combinations along with Suntory’s blending team, before arriving at the final “harmony of flavours” that make up Ardray.
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It said: “With inspiration from historic blend styles and the vision of Suntory's founder Shinjiro Torii, Ardray celebrates the quest to reimagine the historic excellence of blended scotch and encourage a greater appreciation for the art of blending.
"A hundred years ago, inspired by traditional Scottish whisky, Torii-San envisioned a Japanese approach to create a subtle, refined, yet complex whisky that would suit the delicate palate of the Japanese."
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The firm added: "With this remarkable blend, we honour Torii’s quest, from a reinterpretation of Scotch for the Japanese palate to Ardray: a new, elegant interpretation, designed to celebrate the excellence of blended Scotch Whisky."
Mr Fraser said that "in creating Ardray, we have combined an exceptional selection of the very best Scotch whisky has to offer with the inspiring talent of Suntory’s blending team to create something new, refreshing and exciting".
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He said: "The time, care and attention to detail taken to source both malt and grain whiskies from some of Scotland's most noted distilleries has allowed us to explore hundreds of blends of Scotch malt and grain whiskies to achieve Ardray’s optimum balance of multi-layered flavours.
"Driven by the desire to ensure the true beauty of this blend is greater than the sum of its parts.
“Ardray promises a rich and complex taste, with a distinctive harmony of flavours: a mild, gently floral, and citrusy fruitiness, with a vanilla custard creaminess and a rich, silky mouthfeel and lengthy aftertaste that is unmatched."
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