Those inclined to Japanese whiskies, would know of Suntory and it's many whiskies. Heck, even if you weren't into whisky, Suntory makes a wide enough breadth of products that it's a rather prevalent presence throughout bars and alcohol stores.

Whether you prefer beer or whisky, however, it is simple fact that Suntory's whiskies are some of the most highly sought after in the world. From the Yamazaki to Hakushu lines made in Japan, bottles range from fairly pricy, to boasting eye-watering price tags. 

And outside Japan, the issue goes beyond price. Allocation for Yamazaki and Hakushu has been notoriously tight, while Kakubin, Suntory's workhorse blend, has historically been consumed domestically. For a long time, there weren't many highly accessible entry points into Japanese whisky for overseas drinkers. That's the gap Toki was built to fill. And it has quite the history too. 

We of course know of Suntory as the global beverage giant now, but the story starts with one Shinjirō Torii. He opened the store Torii Shōten in Osaka on February 1, 1899, to sell imported wines. In 1907, the store began selling a fortified wine called Akadama Port Wine (Akadama literally meaning "red ball," a euphemism for the sun). The store became the Kotobukiya company in 1921 to further expand its business.

Shinjirō Torii.

Kotobukiya (which later became Suntory) would also cross paths with the founder of what would become Nikka Whisky. Together, they established and ran Suntory’s Yamazaki Distillery back in 1923, making it the oldest malt distillery in Japan. 

During World War II, shortages forced Kotobukiya to halt the development of new products. However, in 1946, they successfully re-released Torys Whisky, which enjoyed strong sales in post-war Japan. To capitalize on the growing desire for travel, Kotobukiya launched the "Drink Torys and Go to Hawaii" campaign in 1961. At that time, international travel was a rare and exciting prospect.

Torys Whisky, the one to start off the Suntory whisky legacy.

In 1963, Kotobukiya rebranded itself as "Suntory," a name derived from the company's flagship whisky. "Suntory" itself combines "Sun" (referencing the "akadama" of their early wines) with "Tory," an anglicized version of founder Shinjirō Torii's name. That same year, the company established the Musashino Beer Factory, marking its entry into the beer market with Suntory Beer.

Behind the corporate milestones, though, Suntory's approach to whisky has always been shaped by a specific tension. Over a century ago, Western spirits arriving in Japan were simply too bold and strong for the Japanese palate. Founder Shinjirō Torii set out to make whisky that worked for Japanese tastes, guided by three principles that Suntory still references today: Wa (和) (balance between human and nature), Monozukuri (ものづくり) (elevated Japanese craftsmanship), and Omotenashi (おもてなし) (authentic Japanese hospitality). Combined with the naturally soft water around Suntory's distillery sites, these principles continue to inform the house blending style.

While the Yamazaki, Hakushu and even Kakubin lines might be more well known, Suntory also makes other whisky offerings according to its declared philosophy. One such one is the Suntory Toki.

Suntory Global Spirits Chicago, where the concept for Suntory Toki was conceived.

Suntory Toki has been quietly building a following overseas. Developed around 10 years ago by Mr Takahiro Itoga, then part of Suntory's marketing team in Chicago (and now Suntory's APAC CFO), Suntory Toki was conceived specifically to solve the accessibility problem. It was originally a US-market-only product, designed for the cocktail bar channel, since bars rather than izakayas are the main consumption venue for Japanese whisky outside Japan. Since its US debut, Toki has picked up a Silver at the 2023 San Francisco World Spirits Competition and a Gold at the 2024 International Spirits Challenge in the Japanese Whisky category. After being available in the US for years, Toki is now returning to Asia and being officially launched in Japan or Singapore.

We attended the official Singapore launch of Toki at Pop City, the Japanese-lifestyle cocktail bar by Singapore's renowned Jigger & Pony at 19 Cecil Street. Pop City is itself a collaboration with the House of Suntory. The bar plays with the concept of "City Pop", the Japanese music genre that soundtracked 1980s optimism, and is split across several zones: a Byōbu Bar (named after Japan's traditional folding screen), a Tasting Commons area, and an Bar Mixtape area that would soon be open. It's very much a bar built around Japanese drinking culture rather than just Japanese ingredients.

At the launch, I heard directly from the people behind Toki: Takahiro Itoga himself who conceived of the product a decade ago; Aki Eguchi, Jigger & Pony Group's bar programme director; Roger, Suntory's Marketing Director; and Andrew Pang, the beloved Regional Brand Ambassador. What they shared filled in a lot of gaps about why this whisky exists and what's actually in it.

Even the bottle was designed bartender-first. According to Itoga, he had consulted bartenders in New York and Paris during development, and their consistent feedback was that shelf space behind the bar is already packed. The result: a square, stackable bottle that fits efficiently into tight shelf spaces. The slightly elongated neck is about ergonomics; it's designed for speed-rail use, making it easier for bartenders to grab and pour quickly. As Itoga put it at the Singapore launch, this whisky is designed for bartenders.

Toki is a blend of whiskies from Suntory's three iconic distilleries: malt from Yamazaki (it is said that there are two Yamazaki malts, including Spanish oak cask-matured whisky) and lightly peated Hakushu, with grain whisky from Chita. A detail worth noting: the specific Chita grain whisky used in Toki is of a heavier type, drawn from a second column still rather than the cleaner distillate from the fourth column used in the Kakubin. According to Suntory Brand Ambassador Andrew Pang, this heavier Chita variant is the same one used in Hibiki 21 and Hibiki 30, which gives some indication of the quality of components going into it. All colour in the glass is natural, coming from the barrels rather than artificial colouring. 

And as a fun fact, while the name "Toki" means "time" (時) in Japanese, the homophonic kanji on the label "季" actually translates to "seasons."

The natural comparison is to Hibiki, Suntory's other famous blended offering. What can be said is that Toki was designed for versatility across serve styles (neat, highball, Mizuwari, cocktails), while Hibiki is a more traditional sipping blend showcasing a greater proportion of malt whiskies matured in a significant number of first-fill bourbon and sherry casks. Though, Aki Eguchi of Jigger & Pony noted that while he initially assumed Toki was great for highball mixing, tasting it neat pleasantly surprised him: the layers were more serious than he expected.

Hibiki, Suntory's renowned blended offering.

Right, enough talk! How does it taste? Let's get stuck in!

Whisky Review: Toki Suntory Whisky, 43% ABV

Tasting Notes

Colour: Straw.

Aroma: Lots of vanilla cream, it’s really thick and creamy, there are obvious grain notes too, candy corn. It’s quite butter as well, but more cream than butter. Soft bits of citruses - oranges, lemons, then green apple and apple skin on the nose, which according to Andrew can be attributed to the Hakushu component. I get some straw and hay as well, with just a slight bit of musty woodiness and a little bit of incense.

Taste: Really creamy, grainy too, packing in heaps of vanilla cream, some straw, as well as a more prominent bit of orange liqueur here too along with a rather subtle dark chocolate tone. I don't think I was imagining it when I felt that the texture and weight of this is a step up from a Suntory Kakubin. The texture feels noticeably more substantial, and the creaminess and sweetness is much more prominent. 

Finish: Ooh, really interesting twist here - it’s giving lots of incense ash. It’s at once aromatic but also just a little bit gritty and ashy. A brighter streak of that citrus acidity here as well. A lightly spiced quality in the finish attributable to the Yamazaki Spanish oak component.

My Thoughts

This is surprisingly a really interesting whisky, even standalone, and I daresay is actually worth paying attention to. Now to get it out of the way, there’s obviously lots of great quality grain whisky in here - not a bad thing by the way, but I do know folks have their thoughts about that. 

It’s really rich with lots of vanilla cream and that persistent outline of citrus that follows through. The grain notes do sort of give it a more confectionary quality to it, with creaminess that adds a lot of enjoyment even when it's just tasted neat. What really impressed me as you probably might’ve guessed is that hit of incense on the finish that was quite unexpected, but also very fascinating. 

The Highball Postscript

Having tried it with some soda or Ginger Ale, I can say that this went really well!

Honestly for the price, the Toki makes for an interesting dram on its own, and a damn good Highball that’s got lots of complexity, is really citrus forward with some fascinating scents of incense coming through, as well as being really creamy, with the ashiness and grainy quality completely washed away.

We absolutely loved Aki's signature Yamanote Highball!

If you'd like a professional to make a Highball for you, Pop City Bar (operated by Jigger & Pony Group) is running a Yamanote Highball designed by Aki Eguchi. It's served clean-style with a touch of orange blossom water and lemon peel over chipped ice, and it goes for SGD $25 (or $15 during happy hour). Named after Tokyo's Yamanote Line, the drink is designed as an entry point for people new to whisky. 

There's also a listening-and-tasting experience at Bar Mixtape, an intimate nook at Pop City launching in May 2026, where Toki will feature in curated listening sessions for small groups.

Kanpai!

@111hotpot