First introduced globally in 2016, Toki was conceived as a modern entry point into Japanese whisky. Crafted by Chief Blender Shinji Fukuyo, the whisky is the culmination of spirits from three of Suntory’s most revered distilleries: Hakushu, Yamazaki, and Chita Distillery.

Toki has been around, yes, but now Suntory is positioning the whisky with a new kind of drinking culture in Singapore and across Southeast Asia. It's a move where one values the time spent nursing the drink. Where a look down the glass tumbler accounts for a moment of quiet contemplation.

Which brings us to our linguistic bugbear: redundancy. We strike down any excess words, especially those that repeat themselves. “Free gift” is one such offender. “Close proximity” is another. And don’t get us started on initialism/acronyms (or Redundant Acronym Syndrome) like “PIN number” or “HIV virus”.

I suppose one can be forgiven when you have semantic reduplication across languages, but it still grates when you have these errant bilingual tautologies bandied about like “pita bread” or  “chai tea”.

Hell, even “New Bahru”.

So, when we heard that Suntory wants to associate the phrase “It’s Toki time”—which stems from “It’s Suntory time” (thanks Bill Murray)—with Toki whisky (“toki” is “time” in Japanese), a lump rises in my throat. Perhaps a Toki highball can wash it down…

Thank God, we have a Yamanote Highball from Pop City at hand. Created by Pop City’s Aki Eguchi, it’s named after Tokyo’s iconic Yamanote Line with Toki whisky served over chipped ice and a splash of orange blossom water to amplify the whisky’s citrus and herbal notes while introducing a delicate floral lift.

Pop City’s sister bar, BARREL, delivers a variant of the highball, this time served on a draft. As casual as they come, this Toki Highball is a great way of winding down the day after work.

On the nose, Toki opens with basil, green apple and honey notes. The palate introduces a citrusy brightness that’s layered with grapefruit and peppermint. Then, you have a gentle spiced finish with hints of vanilla oak, white pepper and ginger.

Taken neat, it’s clean and expressive. On the rocks, it softens. As a highball, it’s refreshing and different. Its versatility earned accolades, including a Silver at the 2023 San Francisco World Spirits Competition and Gold at the 2024 International Spirits Challenge.

And, maybe that’s why Toki time endures; the repetition is necessary. Like the song, “New York, New York”, it’s so good, you gotta say it twice.

Toki Suntory Whisky is available at liquor retailers, e-commerce platforms, and duty-free shops. Toki Highball(SGD12++) is available at the Terrace at BARREL, and the Yamanote Highball(SGD25++) at Pop City.