We take the classic British approach of flavouring gin with sloe berries and give it an authentic Kyoto twist by swapping sloe berries for ume plums and haskap berries to create a one-of-a-kind liqueur.
Perfectly ripe Kyoto-grown plums are picked from Akio Tanaka’s farm south of Uji at the peak of the season and macerated for several months in a specially tweaked version of our award-winning gin. When optimum extraction is reached, the ume plums are removed and we add haskap berries from Hokkaido for a few short weeks: these are then discarded before our delicious liqueur is sweetened with sugar also from Japan’s northernmost island.
Haskap comes from the Ainu word meaning “the little present at the end of the branch”: they are from the honeysuckle family and are also known as honeyberries.
The depth of flavour that comes from KI NO BAI, with its perfect balance of sweet and sour, lengthened with soda water for a long and refreshing aperitif.
