Celebrating the ultimate expression of Scotland’s whisky heritage captured through a Japanese lens
London, 5th June 2023 – Today, Beam Suntory, a world leader in premium spirits and producer of some of the foremost whiskies, unveiled the company’s latest creation – ARDRAY® – an exquisite new interpretation of blended Scotch whisky. Balancing Scotland’s unique terroir and long-standing craft tradition with the precision and artistry of Suntory’s award-winning Japanese blenders, ARDRAY promises a fresh perspective on the excellence of blended Scotch.
Beam Suntory’s Chief Blender for Scotch, Calum Fraser, in partnership with Suntory’s blending team, tested nearly 200 different whisky combinations before arriving at the final harmony of flavours that make up ARDRAY. The wonderfully balanced blended recipe interweaves some of Scotland’s finest, most complex signature malts and grain whiskies together to an optimal precise ratio. The result is a whisky designed to challenge preconceptions, treating both malt and grain whiskies as equals to create a whisky that is truly greater than the sum of its parts.
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. 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.
Built on the premise that blended whisky is an art form that deserves both respect and reappraisal, each batch is precisely engineered to achieve the same harmony between malt and grain whiskies each time. By retaining a proportion of each batch, the team blends this with the next batch and harmonises the flavour of the whisky across the batches.
Calum Fraser, Chief Blender for Scotch, comments: “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. 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.”
Drawing from just a handful of the finest Scotch distilleries from Beam Suntory, a world leader in premium spirits and producer of renowned whiskies including Bowmore, Laphroaig, Yamazaki, and Hibiki, and our partners at Edrington (owners of The Macallan, The Glenrothes and Highland Park), this blended Scotch whisky that celebrates the role of terroir and the production traditions of Scotland’s distilleries that define each of their unique spirit character.
Presented in a bespoke bottle each marked with the year of release, the striking artwork of artist Lia Melia adorns each one, capturing Scotland’s raw beauty. Its richly textured rippling pattern representing malt and grain highlights two fundamental ingredients in Scotch whisky. The unique feel of the glass bottle takes after the free-flowing water of Scotland’s streams and rivers, and the patterns made by the wind blowing across barley fields.
From the end of May onwards, a limited batch of under two thousand nine-litre cases of ARDRAY will be for sale in only four cities worldwide: London, Shanghai, Los Angeles, and New York. It will then expand to become available in more markets globally.
ARDRAY is now available at The Whisky Shop with an RRP of £60 / $80 / 530RBM.
For more information, visit Ardray.com.
- ABV: 48% and Non-Chill filtered to make the most of the full complex character of the whiskies in the blend
- A malt rich blend of Scottish Malt and Grain Whiskies, blended in annual batches to achieve a unique harmony of flavours – the recipe will be adjusted according to the precise characteristics of the casks used in each batch
RRP
- 70cl General release: $83 / £60 / 530 RMB
- 2x5cl Experience Pack: $28 / £20 / 180 RMB
- Color: Natural light golden, coming directly from years of gentle cask maturation.
Tasting Notes:
- Aroma: hints of apple, pear, plum lying over a soft savoury smokiness and hints of oregano and clementine.
- Taste: gentle floral and citrus fruitiness providing a lightness and elegance. As it expands its vanilla custard creaminess and silkiness comes to the fore.
- Mouthfeel: Complex, multi-layered and rich
- Finish: long-lasting, with a mellow, cushioning sweet smokiness and soft hints of white pepper and oregano.
ABOUT ARDRAY
ARDRAY is a malt-rich blend created using a handful of malts (from no more than 10 distilleries). The aim is only to include the finest and most complex Scotch whiskies, which is why it calls on single malts from the Beam Suntory portfolio (which includes Laphroaig, Bowmore, Ardmore and Glen Garioch), as well as spirits from partners at Edrington (owners of distilleries such as The Macallan, The Glenrothes and Highland Park).
Combining the unique terroir and long-standing tradition with the precision and artistry of Suntory’s whisky blending in Japan, ARDRAY offers a fresh perspective on the excellence of blended Scotch and tells the story of our quest to reimagine the historic excellence of blended scotch through fresh eyes. ARDRAY, meaning ‘towards the light,’ reflects the guidance of Suntory founder, Shinjiro Torii, and the philosophy of monozukuri craftsmanship: a relentless pursuit of perfection, meticulous attention to detail, and a commitment to quality.
To make ARDRAY, grain and malt whiskies were blended at precise ratio increments to find the exact point at which the perfect harmony was achieved. For each batch, casks of each type of whisky are blended first to create ‘building blocks’ then minute adjustments (0.1%) to the recipe are made for each batch based on the exact character of each building block, to achieve the same harmony between malt and grain whiskies each time. We retain a proportion of each batch – of both the building blocks and the blend as it marries (Solera) – to blend with the next batch and harmonise the flavour of the whisky across the batches.
True appreciation of Ardray can also be enhanced further by serving it ‘Off-the-Rocks’ – a fresh perspective on how whisky should be enjoyed – circumventing the old debate over whether to enjoy with ice or water. Poured ‘Off the Rocks’ to achieve the perfect level of chill and dilution by straining the whisky over quality ice.
ABOUT BEAM SUNTORY
As a world leader in premium spirits, Beam Suntory inspires the brilliance of life by delivering great consumer experiences through its world-class portfolio of brands. Known for its craftsmanship of premium whiskies, including Jim Beam®, Maker’s Mark®, Basil Hayden® and Knob Creek® bourbons; Japanese whiskies, including Yamazaki®, Hakushu®, Hibiki® and Toki™; and leading Scotch brands including Teacher’s, Laphroaig® and Bowmore®, Beam Suntory also produces leading brands such as Courvoisier® cognac, Tres Generaciones®, El Tesoro® and Hornitos® tequila, Roku™ and Sipsmith® gin, Canadian Club® whisky, and is a world leader in ready-to-drink cocktails, with brands like -196 and On The Rocks™ Premium Cocktails.
A global company with approximately 6,000 employees in more than 30 countries, one of Beam Suntory’s core values is Growing for Good and through its Proof Positive sustainability strategy, the company has committed to ambitious goals and investments to promote environmental sustainability in its operations, ensure the company has a positive impact on the communities where employees live and work, and programs to educate and inform consumers to make the right personal choices about drinking. Headquartered in New York City, Beam Suntory is a subsidiary of Suntory Holdings Limited of Japan. For more information on Beam Suntory, its brands, and its commitment to social responsibility, please visit www.beamsuntory.com
