The House of Suntory has rolled out a new premium Japanese craft gin called Roku.
‘Roku’ means ‘six’ in Japanese, which is the number of unique Japanese botanicals used in the distillation process, according to the company.
The hexagonal design of the bottle is also inspired by the six Japanese botanicals: each panel is embossed with images such as yuzu fruit and sakura flowers.
Suntory pays respect to the tradition of gin creation by still using eight well-known botanicals to produce their ROKU gin: juniper berry from Tuscany, coriander seed, angelica root, cardamom seed, angelica seed, cinnamon, bitter orange peel and lemon peel.
However, Roku sets itself apart from other gins on the market in Australia through its unique top notes derived from the six distinctly Japanese botanicals: yuzu, sakura flower, sencha tea, sansho pepper, sakura leaf and gyokuro tea.
This way, the authentic gin taste is preserved in the bottom notes, while still introducing a fresh take on the typical gin-and-tonic cocktail.
Each Roku botanical is harvested according to the Japanese notion of ‘shun’, which holds that each ingredient is harvested at the time best for harnessing the flavour that you require. For example, for a more tart flavour, the fruit would be picked sooner.
ROKU is now sold in Australia.
