Keanu, Sofia Coppola, and the Suntory Anniversary Tribute

News

By RC Staff

08 June 2023

Here’s a unique opportunity for whisky lovers, travelers, or those who like making money. Suntory is celebrating its 100th anniversary this year with a line of limited releases through pop-up shops. Sofia Coppola and Keanu Reeves have already collaborated to produce short film to promote the anniversary, which references Coppola’s “Lost in Translation”. Check the list of participating locations, and make sure to swing by a shop if you can. The whisky sold during this anniversary will likely resell.

100 years of Suntory Whisky

This isn’t the first time we’ve talked about Suntory. We covered the ultra-rare Yamazaki 55 Year a few weeks back to shine a light into the world of high-end whisky. Now, Suntory is relevant again.

To mark 100 years of making whisky, Suntory has commissioned a summer of celebrations. The first is a short film by Sofia Coppola called “Suntory Anniversary Tribute”. We call it a film because that’s what everyone else is saying, but it’s pretty much a commercial. It does feature Keanu Reeves though, so check it out.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DlzqmIWWEfI

The Sofia Coppola connection is relevant because 2023 is also the 20-year anniversary of her film “Lost In Translation”, which featured Suntory in its plot. Keanu did a series of ads for Suntory in 1992 as well, so it’s like the whole family is coming home. He will appear later this summer in a short docuseries based on Suntory directed by Roman Coppola.

Movie stars aside, the anniversary is also relevant because Suntory is producing a series of limited edition whiskies this summer. These include both 12 and 18-year-old versions of their flagship spirits.

Here’s a summary of all the whiskies being sold during Suntory’s 100 Year Anniversary:

Suntory Anniversary Yamazaki 12 Year

This is essentially identical to Suntory’s standard 12 year Yamazaki. The only part notable is a special 100 year anniversary label. The retail price has not been released, but it will likely be somewhere from $200-$500.

The 12 year whiskies will likely not be the highlight of the event. If you’re a collector you might consider picking one up, but resellers should focus on the more expensive bottles.

Suntory Anniversary Yamazaki 18 Year Mizunara

These will likely be the highlights of the celebration. Mizunara refers to a type of Japanese oak bark used to flavor the Yamazaki whisky. The anniversary edition emphasizes this flavor, and its expected to be a different formulation from the standard Yamazaki 18 year. The Suntory Anniversary Yamazaki 18 year Mizunara is expected to retail for $1,500.

As a reformulation of one of Suntory’s iconic offerings, we expect this to be the most popular offering of Suntory’s Anniversary. Buy one if you can.

Suntory Anniversary Hakushu 12 Year

The other 12 year whisky being sold is from the Hakushu distillery. Like the Yamazaki, the blend is unchanged, and only features an alternate label design. Prices will likely be around $150-$400

Again, these whiskies are not the stars of the show. Buy to drink or put on your shelf.

Suntory Anniversary Hakushu 18 Year Peated Malt

Japanese consumers are notoriously intolerant of smoky whisky, which is why the Hakushu whiskies have a more refined flavor than comparable blends. The Anniversary Hakushu 18 Year Peated Malt will retail at $1,200, along with a somewhat stronger and more peaty flavor.

Like the Yamazaki Mizunara, the 18 year Hakushu is a special blend produced exclusively for the anniversary. It will likely resell for well over its retail price to the right collector.

Where to buy Suntory Anniversary whiskies

As part of Suntory’s 100 Year Anniversary celebration, the limited edition whiskies will be sold in handful of select locations.

The first will be in Singapore, at the Lotte Duty Free store at Changi Airport. The shop will run from June 15 to July 25. Additional pop ups will open some time in July, and all of them will take place at an airport.

Suntory Anniversary Celebration locations include:

• Shanghai Pudong International Airport
• Dubai International Airport
• Delhi Indira Gandhi International Airport
• London Heathrow Airport

It’s not clear when or how long these additional pop up shops will run; all Suntory has said is that it will be sometime in July.

Check your travel plans to see if you’ll be passing through one of these airports in July. If you can snag a bottle of either the 18 Year Yamazaki or Hakushu, you can expect to list it for more than you paid. Want proof? Read our article on the Yamazki 55 Year. There is a market for collector’s whisky, and people have proven they will pay serious cash for Suntory products.

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