When you have the resources, expertise and breadth of access of a global spirits kingpin such as Beam Suntory, it must be a rather incredible experience to brainstorm a new product launch. Even when you narrow the field to say, “scotch whisky,” that’s a wide-open invitation to blend together so many disparate elements. Consider: In terms of ownership, Beam Suntory is the parent company of such brands as Bowmore, Auchentoshan, Laphroaig and Ardmore. But for something like the newly released Ardray Blended Scotch Whisky, they went a step further and also sought out rich malts from partner distilleries owned by Edrington, such as The Macallan, Glenrothes and Highland Park. All of those potential influences were then overseen by a combined team of blenders from both Scotland and Suntory in Japan. Or as the company puts it: “Bringing the unique terroir of Scotland together with the precision and artistry of Japan defines this moment. Realized by the award-winning Suntory blending team from Japan, Ardray brings together only the finest, most complex whiskies to celebrate the wonderful attributes that make Scotch so special.”
The result is a new blended scotch whisky, or a “malt rich blend,” as Beam Suntory puts it, which feels like it’s intended to stress “don’t worry, we’re not being cheap here.” Regardless, the final product brings together both malt and grain whiskies from the Highlands, Lowlands and Islands–all clues as to the distillers involved–and blends them together in a solera system. Batches for release from that solera system are then to be drawn once per year, with the annual release year of each batch noted on the bottle. The product is then proofed and bottled at a rather elevated 48% ABV (96 proof), notably high for a blended scotch whisky, at an MSRP of $85. Reportedly, the blenders analyzed almost 200 different whiskies in the course of deciding what to incorporate in Ardray.
So with that said, let’s get to tasting this wide-ranging new Beam Suntory scotch whisky release.
On the nose, the first things to present are delicate fruit and vanilla. There’s a lot of citrus to be found here, evoking lemon meringue pie, along with orange peel, green apple and vanilla wafer. There are lighter and fresher influences, touching on cut grass and florals, but also slight hints of earthiness and salinity. The ghost of a faint smokiness is easy to overlook at first, but becomes more detectable before long. A hint of golden raisin hints at dried fruit, but overall the nose is on the lighter side. It surprisingly, doesn’t read like a whisky of higher proof–if you gave this to someone to nose blind, I expect they would probably think it was the standard 80 proof just nosing it.
On the palate, citrus and vanilla are joined by markedly more spice and definitely more robust smoke and char as well. I’m getting charred cinnamon stick and more herbal/roasted vegetal character. Light biscuity malt and apricot fruitiness mix up with green apple and mixed spice that comes on surprisingly strongly, with heat that is pretty prickly on the palate compared to the nose, where the ethanol didn’t really show up in a big way. You can certainly feel the large number of influences here, but I admire the way they’ve dialed in the more peated contributions in particular to not dominate the proceedings. Overall, this is a nice exercise in blending complexity, overall leaning toward the bold side of the equation thanks to the proof point.
Overall, Ardray Blended Scotch Whisky is a fun synthesis. I’m not sure if the company will necessarily have an easy time selling it as a blended scotch at an elevated price point, rather than as a single malt from a desired distillery, but I can’t fault the thought process in assembling this blend. Note that it is on the punchy side, and will appeal most to those wanting a bolder blended scotch that has a good balance between character from the various scotch whisky regions.
Distillery: Beam Suntory
Region: Scotland
Style: Blended scotch whisky
ABV: 48% ABV (96 proof)
Availability: 750 ml bottles, $85 MSRP
Jim Vorel is a Paste staff writer and resident beer and liquor geek. You can follow him on Twitter for more drink writing.