Background & brief
The brief for this special release was designed to honour Asia’s most significant cultural celebrations – Lunar New Year. The challenged us to capture the festival’s transformative spirit through a collectible design that would mark this momentous occasion, continuing the established ‘Ignite the New Year’ theme while celebrating the season’s promise of renewal, fresh beginnings, and prosperity.

The Strategy
Our strategic approach centered on creating a limited edition worthy of the Lunar New Year’s cultural magnitude. This wasn’t simply seasonal packaging – it was a commemorative piece designed to embody the festival’s essence and become part of consumers’ celebrations. We needed to honour the traditions and symbolism that make this time of year so meaningful while maintaining Royal Salute’s premium positioning.

The Creative Process
We collaborated with Chinese illustrator Jason Lyon, whose ‘magical realism’ style brought the theme to life through vibrant palettes and intricate symbolism. His artwork features a majestic ‘life-giving’ lion surrounded by blooming florals, butterflies, fireworks, and floating lanterns – all symbols of love, joy, and prosperity.
Flowing waterfalls weave through the composition, reinforcing renewal and fresh cycles. The design seamlessly integrates Royal Salute’s heritage through depictions of the Tower of London and Strathisla distillery, grounding the celebratory artwork in brand legacy. The result transforms the packaging into a collectible art piece that honours both Lunar New Year festivities and Royal Salute’s rich Scottish heritage.

Taiwan: Formosa Edition

Building on this foundation, we developed a second design specifically for Taiwan, maintaining our collaboration with Jason Lyon to retain the integrity of the concept whilst flexing it to give it Taiwanese relevance. Following design principles established in previous years, the Taiwan edition features a sophisticated purple background that elevates the luxury positioning for this 23-year-old expression, enhanced with extensive gold foil detailing.

While retaining the Tower of London and Strathisla distillery as essential brand anchors, the Taiwan edition changed the lion for a phoenix, a symbol of renewal and transformation, and embraces the overarching theme of natural beauty. The artwork incorporates distinctly Taiwanese elements such as national flowers and indigenous wildlife, sky lanterns and firecrackers —each symbol carefully chosen to reflect deeper cultural relevance and celebrate Taiwan’s rich heritage.

Results, Value & Impact

The Royal Salute Lunar New Year Limited Edition has established itself as an anticipated annual release, with consumers actively seeking each year’s design as both a premium whisky expression and a collectible commemoration of the festival. For five consecutive years, these limited editions have reinforced Royal Salute’s position as the whisky of choice for Lunar New Year celebrations, driving significant brand presence during this crucial cultural moment and elevating consumer engagement across key Asian markets. By releasing culturally resonant limited editions like the Taiwanese Formosa Edition, Royal Salute has positioned itself not as an observer of Lunar New Year but as a participant – a brand that understands the festival’s significance and honours it through exceptional design.