News Briefs for August 2, 2023

•The House of Suntory has launched Legent Yamazaki Cask Finish Blend. The new whiskey starts as an 8-year-old Kentucky Straight Bourbon before being shipped to Kyoto, Japan for barrel finishing and blending. Once in Japan the whiskey is finished in a combination of French oak, Sherry casks, and Yamazaki Spanish Oak casks before blending and bottling at 57% abv. Legent Yamazaki Cask Finish Blend is a limited release and will be available in select retailers in the U.S., Canada, Germany, and travel retail. It carries a suggested price of $200.

•New York’s Hudson Whiskey, part of the William Grant portfolio, has announced a new partnership with the New York Mets, making the distillery’s Bright Lights, Big Bourbon the official whiskey of the baseball team. Additionally, William Grant & Sons has entered a three-year agreement with the team to see its portfolio of spirits—including Hendrick’s, Glenfiddich, Tullamore D.E.W., Monkey Shoulder, Sailor Jerry, and The Balvenie—sold throughout Citi Field. To celebrate the partnership, Hudson Whiskey has released a limited edition Mets-branded bottling of Bright Lights, Big Bourbon to select retailers in New York, New Jersey, and Connecticut. Hudson had U.S. volume of 12,500 cases last year, according to Impact Databank.

•Oregon’s Hood River Distillers is debuting McCarthy’s Oregon Single Malt Whiskey, aged for six years in Oregon Oak casks and finished for four months in Oloroso Sherry Casks. The 56% abv offering retails at $120 a bottle and will be available in limited quantities through retailers in Oregon, New York, Colorado, Texas, Washington state, and California, as well as online. In addition to the new Oloroso-finished expression, the McCarthy’s portfolio includes a 3-year Oregon Single Malt Whiskey, 6-year Oregon Single Malt Whiskey, and a 6-year Oregon Single Malt Whiskey finished in PX Sherry Casks.

•New York-based importer and distributor Skurnik Wines & Spirits will exclusively represent California’s Martha Stoumen Wines in the states of New York, Connecticut, Rhode Island, and Pennsylvania effective this month. Sourcing grapes from the Ukiah area of Mendocino County, Contra Costa County, and Suisun Valley, while farming 25% of its own production, Martha Stoumen is known for natural wines and produces about 8,000 cases annually.

Tagged : Beam Suntory, Hood River Distillers, Hudson Whiskey, Legent, Marth Stoumen Wines, McCarthy's Oregon Single Malt, Skurnik, William Grant & Sons

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