Craft wave in Hokkaido!
The first gin distillery in Hokkaido is born.

Craft spirits that are particular about their ingredients and production methods are enjoying a global boom, and craft gin is attracting as much attention in Japan as ever.This issue features the first distillery in Hokkaido, the Benizakura Distillery, which was established in Hokkaido.

writer：SOTONOMO

Hokkaido kelp adds character to familiar spices such as black pepper.(Photos and text by SOTONOMO)

In April 2018, Hokkaido's first gin distillery, the Benizakura Distillery, was established.

The Kyoto distillery, which opened in 2016, is the only distillery in Japan specialising in gin, but this time the distillery is located in Hokkaido.

The distillery is located in a private park called Benizakura Park in Sapporo, which is well known locally for its cherry blossoms and autumn leaves.

The park also has a Genghis Khan restaurant, a Japanese garden and an authentic tea ceremony room.

In one corner of the park is the Benizakura Distillery.

The distillery produces an original gin called '9148' in an Italian Barison distiller.

It uses subsoil water from Sapporo's Minami Ward as the split water and plans to produce more than 6,000 litres per year.