Japan distiller Suntory to launch affordable highball

Japanese whiskey manufacturers are trying to keep up with the drink's shortage while trying to maintain its popularity.

Suntory Spirits Ltd. will launch a canned highball made from its high-end Hakushu whisky at an affordable price in June, while Asahi Breweries Ltd. and Kirin Brewery Co. have increased their whisky production.

Suntory Spirits said that the new product, a 350 milliliter Can of Suntory Premium Highball Hakushu, will be put on the market nationwide in limited quantities on June 6. Its alcohol content is set at 9% so that the drink can also be enjoyed with ice. The company plans to release a canned highball of its Yamazaki brand for the same price this autumn.

There are customers who haven't tried whisky yet. Suntory Spirits President Nobuhiro Torii said at a press conference that if they have an opportunity to drink and like it, there may be more demand.

Suntory is celebrating the 100th anniversary of its whiskey production, which started at its Yamazaki Distillery in Shimamoto, Osaka Prefecture.

Suntory will spend 10 billion to renovate the distillery and Hakushu Distillery in Hokuto, Yamanashi Prefecture by the end of 2024.

The Japanese whisky market was in a slump after its peak in 1983. It has been recovering in part thanks to Suntory's efforts to promote highball in 2008, made by mixing whisky with carbonated water. As a drink to drink with meals, whisky began to be accepted by the younger generation.

Japanese whisky has received many inquiries and orders from overseas, and has been highly praised at international fairs.

Its production hasn't been able to keep pace with the increasing demand. Some products have been in short supply in recent years, leaving consumers finding them hard to obtain.

Suntory increased the number of pot stills for making whiskey as well as warehouses in which whisky is stored and matured in casks in the 2010 s.a.

Asahi Breweries, which produces whisky under brands such as Taketsuru, has increased its production capacity by adding more warehouses from 2019 to 2021. Kirin Brewery began exporting its Fuji brand whiskey to countries like Australia and China in 2022 to take advantage of overseas demand.