As world whisky evolves from niche curiosity into a legitimate category, Singapore’s own The Orientalist Spirits is making the case that spirits blended from different parts of Asia offers a compelling narrative.
Not so long ago, the idea of blending whisky from across multiple countries would have been enough to provoke outrage among whisky traditionalists. Indignant, explosive outrage.
For decades, the hierarchy seemed fixed. Single malts sat at the pinnacle — particularly single malt Scotch — prized for their sense of place and distillery character, while blends were often sneered at, viewed as merely a stepping stone to something more “serious”. Yet the past decade has seen that narrative rewritten. Today, a growing number of producers are embracing spirits that transcend national borders, creating blends that draw on the strengths of multiple whisky-making traditions rather than being confined by them.
Much of that shift can be traced to the emergence of world whisky as a recognised category. Early pioneers such as Japan’s cult whisky maverick Ichiro Akuto challenged conventional thinking through releases like Ichiro’s Malt & Grain World Blended Whisky that first appeared back in 2011, combining whiskies from Japan, Scotland, Ireland, Canada and the United States into a single expression.
The concept gained further legitimacy when Suntory launched World Whisky Ao in 2019, bringing together whiskies from its distilleries across five countries. More recently, Japan’s Yamazakura has entered the conversation with its own international blends from Asaka Distillery, signalling that multinational whisky blending is no longer a novelty but an increasingly accepted part of the modern whisky landscape.
Around the same time that Suntory unveiled Ao, stepping into this evolving category was The Orientalist Spirits with a notably different point of view.
Founded in Singapore by veteran hospitality entrepreneur Michel Lu, The Orientalist Spirits was conceived around a simple but ambitious proposition: that Asia’s extraordinary diversity of ingredients, distilling traditions and ageing environments could form the basis of a spirits house that represents the continent as a whole rather than any single nation.
The idea first crystallised during Lu’s travels in Shangri-La on the Tibetan plateau, where he envisioned a brand capable of capturing and sharing what he describes as the soul of Asia through spirits. So while many world whiskies continue to look westward, drawing together stock from established whisky-producing nations across Europe and North America, The Orientalist Spirits is a self-described “all-Asian spirits house” that focuses primarily on Asia itself.
The result? A portfolio built around expressions created for contemporary bars and drinkers that are regional in scope rather than national in identity.
Its Origins Vodka, for example, is blended from three separately distilled spirit bases featuring Tibetan highland barley, Taiwanese longan honey and multiple potato varieties before being proofed with water from Japan’s Sakurajima Peninsula. Likewise Gunpowder Gin incorporates botanicals from across the continent, including gunpowder tea, Kampot peppercorns, Korean omija berries and osmanthus flower.
But its philosophy is perhaps most clearly expressed through Dragon Whisky, the brand’s flagship whisky expression. The blend combines whiskies sourced from Japan, Taiwan and India, bringing together three of Asia’s most influential whisky-producing nations into a single bottle. The whisky undergoes double-wood maturation before a finishing period in Oloroso sherry casks, resulting in notes of dried fruits, dark chocolate, vanilla, apricot and gentle spice.
What makes Dragon Whisky noteworthy is not merely its flavour profile, but what it represents. The blend effectively treats Asia itself as a whisky region, drawing together Japanese elegance, Taiwanese intensity and India’s tropical maturation influence into a cohesive whole. In doing so, it challenges the long-held assumption that provenance must be confined within national borders.
The same approach extends across the wider portfolio. Imperial Solera 23 Rum blends rums from Thailand, the Philippines and Indonesia matured at origin for between six and 23 years.
In many respects, The Orientalist Spirits reflects a broader evolution occurring throughout the premium spirits industry. Drinkers today appear increasingly flavour-first, but are also interested not only in where a spirit comes from and also in how different traditions can interact. Categories once defined by rigid geography are becoming more fluid, allowing blenders to exercise creativity in ways that were previously impossible.
Indeed, this changing attitude naturally leads to a reassessment of blended whisky itself.
Once viewed as a compromise, thoughtfully assembled blends are increasingly appreciated as a distinct craft requiring its own expertise for. And if single malts showcase the character of one distillery, world blends offer something different: the ability to create flavour profiles that no single distillery or country could achieve alone.
For a generation of drinkers raised on notions of terroir and authenticity, that may once have sounded counterintuitive. But here we are at the frontier of world spirits innovation — and we’re all the better for it.
Official Specifications and Tasting Notes – The Orientalist Spirits
Origins Vodka
Layers of flavour marry for a soulful and expressive concoction.
The Orientalist’s triple-blended vodka combines Tibetan barley, Taiwanese longan honey, and nine different potato varieties, proofed with ultra-soft water from Japan’s Sakurajima Peninsula. The resulting spirit delivers a creamy mouthfeel with aromatic sweetness alongside earthy and herbaceous notes.
- Base Ingredients: Tibetan barley, Taiwanese longan honey, nine potato varieties
- Water Source: Sakurajima Peninsula, Japan
- ABV: 40% (80 proof)
- Vintage: Non-vintage
- Ageing: Unaged
- Bottle Size: 700ml
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Gunpowder Gin
A contemporary wheat-based gin produced using both traditional and low-temperature vacuum distillation to preserve the character of 23 botanicals.
Key botanicals include Gunpowder tea, Lapsang Souchong tea, Kampot peppercorn, Siberian ginseng, Korean omija berries, dried tangerine peel, osmanthus flower, angelica, coriander, orris root and Macedonian juniper berries. The profile is aromatic, refreshing and balanced.
- Base Spirit: Wheat
- Botanicals: 23
- Distillation: Traditional and vacuum distillation
- ABV: 40% (80 proof)
- Vintage: Non-vintage
- Ageing: Unaged
- Bottle Size: 700ml
***
Dragon 8YO Whisky
An eight-year-old double wood matured whisky created from whiskies sourced from Japan, Taiwan and India.
The blend receives a six-month finish in Oloroso sherry casks and presents notes of dried dates, red fruits and dark chocolate, alongside aromas of vanilla, raisin, apricot, spice, smoke and sherry.
- Origin of Component Whiskies: Japan, Taiwan, India
- Age Statement: Minimum 8 years
- Maturation: Double wood matured
- Additional Finish: 6 months in Oloroso sherry casks
- ABV: 43% (86 proof)
- Colour: Dark amber
- Vintage: Non-vintage
- Bottle Size: 700ml
***
Imperial Solera 23 Rum
A small-batch sipping rum assembled from rums sourced from Thailand, the Philippines and Indonesia.
The rum was developed following a year-long blind tasting programme of Asian rums and matured at origin in a solera system using ex-bourbon and Pedro Ximénez sherry casks. The profile features dates, cacao and oak, with butterscotch and pineapple on the nose.
- Origin of Component Rums: Thailand, Philippines, Indonesia
- Ageing: Solera aged between 6 and 23 years
- Casks: Ex-bourbon and Pedro Ximénez sherry barrels
- Still Type: Copper-lined column stills
- ABV: 43% (86 proof)
- Colour: Dark amber
- Vintage: Non-vintage
- Bottle Size: 700ml
To learn more or to purchase, visit: www.theorientalistspirits.com. For trade enquiries, contact Destination Beverage at horeca(at)destinationbeverage.com.
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