SINGAPORE — Many were surprised when Suntory Whisky’s Yamazaki Sherry Cask 2013 was crowned World Whisky of the Year in Jim Murray’s 2015 Whisky Bible. But for fans of well-made whisky, it only reminded them of the quality in the variety available today. (To boot, for the second year in a row, a non-Scotch whisky — the Crown Royal Northern Harvest Rye, a Canadian malt whisky — garnered that honour this year.)

That said, Yamazaki’s win did create quite a buzz among the majority of imbibers and a phenomenal rise in demand (and prices) for the distillery’s whiskies (single malts, age and no-age statement blends). And for those dreaming of the next winning elixir, that elusive bottle may be available sooner than they think. This week, Beam Suntory announced that the Yamazaki Sherry Cask 2016 will hit our shores in February, after Chinese New Year. Key retailers will only be confirmed when the bottles arrive in Singapore, while prices should be confirmed by the end of the month, said a spokesperson. She added that 5,000 bottles have been allocated globally with a very limited number set aside for the Singapore market.

“As the pioneer of Japanese whisky, Suntory always challenges the status quo and is deeply committed to achieve the highest quality in its whisky making,” said Beam’s Mike Miyamoto, global brand ambassador, Suntory Whisky. “The Yamazaki Sherry Cask 2016 leverages the same lot of whiskies used for the Yamazaki Sherry Cask 2013 for its base. These whiskies have matured for two more years, and to this blend, we added various rare sherry cask single-malt whiskies, some of which are over 25 years old.”

For the uninitiated, sherry cask whisky has been a constant staple of the Suntory Whisky portfolio since 1924, a year after the distillery began construction. Shinjiro Torii, the founding father of Japanese whisky first started making his whiskies by leveraging on imported Spanish sherry casks to blend his famous Akadama Sweet Wine.

Today, Yamazaki’s chief blender Shinji Fukuyo maintains a similarly deliberate approach to his designs, meticulously selecting from over a hundred malt whiskies. And according to the company, he did not blend the Yamazaki Sherry Cask 2016 for the novice, rather the “Suntory whisky lover”, or those who have developed an appreciation for its “complex, refined and subtle tastes”. And this is no mean feat when you consider the sherry cask’s typically powerful influence.

On the rocks, the provided tasting notes claim a Delaware-grape-like sweetness is noticeable as is a slight bitter acidity, while a soft sweetness is apparent when cut with water.

Suffice it to say, there is only one way to truly know. Let’s hope the expected dash for it won’t lead to another ridiculous price hike.