Hiroshima's first craft, SAKURAO GIN, is
local & eco-friendly!
<Part 2>

This month, we take an in-depth look at Hiroshima craft gin SAKURAO GIN.It reports on the desire to 'Made in Hiroshima', including the use of native plants from Miyajima, and the efforts of the makers to protect the nature of Miyajima.

writer：Ryoko Kuraishi

Visitor centre on the ground floor of the head office.The tasting counter has a wide range of gins from around the world to compare with SAKURAO GIN.

The best material came from all over the county.

The development team, including Taihei Yamamoto from SAKURAO DISTILLERY, utilised their connections with producers cultivated through the liqueur business to source the best ingredients from all over the prefecture, including Hiroshima citrus, local cherry blossoms and oyster shells.


Once the materials that meet the criteria have been gathered, the next step is to select the ingredients.
Mr Yamamoto says that every time he looked at the materials that didn't make the cut, it was hard to picture the producer's face.


Anyway, we were able to secure good ingredients.
Finally, we could concentrate on assembling a recipe to get closer to the zoning we were aiming for. ......


'Actually, when we did a test distillation based on the recipe we'd completed in the testing lab, it turned out to be completely different from the flavour we were aiming for.
From there, we had to make major adjustments to the recipe, and as the release date had already been set, we were indeed in a hurry.


A domestic gin was launched in the middle of development, and the development team was under intense pressure at the time to 'release it as soon as possible' (laughs)."

The bottle on the left is a limited edition bottle wholesaled only to bars in Hiroshima Prefecture.The amount of juniper berries used has been further increased, and the crisp aroma is popular with bartenders.

The result is a gin made with 17 botanicals from all over the county, but the problem is the price.


The problem was the price.
We decided that it would be impractical to use just one brand, so we decided to mix domestic ingredients with overseas ingredients to create another brand that could be used easily in bars.


We decided to release this as 'ORIGINAL' and the one using only botanicals from Hiroshima as 'LIMITED'.


The finished product is a cocktail that expresses the taste that the bartenderThe result is a dry gin that can be easily made into cocktails and expresses the taste as imagined by the bartender.


'Today, gins that emphasise the individuality of the botanicals are popular, but we pursued a dry taste to make it easy to use in bars.
In that sense, I think it's a product for professionals such as bartenders."

ジンで、地元の自然環境を守る。

Yamamoto wanted to create a more unique limited edition product in addition to the ORIGINAL and LIMITED lines, so he knocked on the door of the Hiroshima City Botanical Park.


He asked a botanical expert if there was any fragrant botanical that was unique to Hiroshima, and was told of a native plant that grows on Miyajima Island.


The plant is called 'Hamagou'.This plant grows wild only in the coastal area of Miyajima, a World Heritage Site.
It has a refreshing mint-like fragrance and has been used for incense since the Heian period (794-1185).


We were introduced to Dr Hiromi Tsubota of the Miyajima Natural Plant Experiment Station attached to the Graduate School of Science at Hiroshima University, located on Miyajima, and were allowed to use HAMAGOU.


The result is the limited-edition bottle 'HAMAGOU'."

Itsukushima Shrine and the Yayama Primeval Forest behind it are registered as a World Natural Heritage Site, but Miyajima, including the surrounding sea area, has a truly rich ecosystem.


The island's unique nature has been preserved because of its independent environment and the fact that the entire island is an object of worship in the form of shrine and temple forests, which have been difficult for people to access.


'The development of the gin has made us realise anew the richness of Miyajima and its nature on our own turf.
We felt that we should all preserve this for future generations, and the entire Chugoku Brewery company has been involved in environmental conservation activities.


Currently, we are involved in activities such as cleaning up the coast where HAMAGOU grows wild, restoring vegetation around the Shishi-iwa Station of the Miyajima Ropeway, and supporting local junior high school students in their tree-planting activities for native plants.
In addition, part of the proceeds from the sale of HAMAGOU are donated to environmental conservation activities."

They also make liqueurs using Hiroshima citrus.Two types: lemon and hassak.

The next step is Hiroshima's first single malt whisky.

Mr Yamamoto says that in order to develop more gins, he is currently researching the flavour components of different botanicals from different regions and types, and is increasing the number of aroma "drawers", such as the way different distillations produce different aromas.
We can look forward to a craft gin that captures the aroma of Hiroshima, following in the footsteps of HAMAGOU.


They have also started producing Hiroshima's first single malt whisky, which is said to be matured in bourbon casks, sherry casks and newly created Mizunara oak casks.
This one will be unveiled after 2021, and we can't wait.


'It will be a long way before the whisky is ready, but during our new distillery tour, which will start in April, we will show you the whisky cellar before it is completed.
In addition, we will have a tasting bar in there.


We are a small distillery that has just come into being, but we would be happy if bartenders from all over the country could get to know SAKURAO GIN and become interested in SAKURAO DISTILLERY!Nee."