r/JapaneseWhisky

My buddy picked up the Hibiki 12 travel exclusive from Taipei Duty Free for me and I picked up 2 Hibiki Harmony x Chiso collab.

Hi all, I'm here today with a considerably obscure whisky from Suntory with a particularly, um, interesting looking bottle- the Suntory Excellence!

The Suntory Excellence was originally created in 1971, as a direct response to a major shift in Japan's liquor import laws back in the day which made Scotch whiskies much more available.

This blended whisky with an unmistakably recognizable bottle design was released as a member of Suntory's premium whisky lineup- right above their medium-high shelfer Suntory Royal (details here, part 1/part 2), and below their then-topmost shelfer, the Suntory Imperial

It wasn't a one off experimental release either- it was Suntory's staple higher shelfer between 1971~1989, then as a less promoted mini bottle release between 1990~2004- a proud 33 year shelf history that had unfortunately mostly been forgotten today. It even had a few special decanter releases! (see pic 2, 3)

In essence, Suntory Excellence used to inhabit the same niche as the original Hibiki, and was in some ways its direct precursor!

So how does it taste? Details in comments!

Chichibu 8785
Chichibu 5494
Chichibu 13475
Chichibu 5497
Chichibu 4226
Ichiro’s Malt Double Distillers (Chichibu x Komagatake)
Kanosuke Chichibu Whiskey Festival 2026
Kanosuke Double Distillery The Mellow Bar Reserve