Top 10 award-winning Asian spirits
From Japanese fruit to Thai rice and Indian agave, the core ingredients used in the craft of Asian spirits are markedly different from those we typically experience in the West, which makes the category all the more exciting. But which are the best ones to try?
The Asian spirits category is eclectic and exciting, but for most of us, it’s also unfamiliar, and potentially overwhelming. What are the ingredients, how do they taste, and what should we look out for when it comes to the best? All valid questions that The Asian Spirits Masters blind tasting competition looks to answer annually as its cohort of judges join to assess the quality of each year’s entrants and assign Master, Gold and Silver medals to the deserving liquids.
This year’s experts were: Matt Chambers, co-founder of Whisky For Everyone; Marie Cheong-Thong, food and beverage educator and founder of The Larder at 36; Bryan Rodriguez-Curtis, wine and spirits expert, and experienced spirits buyer; and Melita Kiely, editor-in-chief of The Spirits Business and chair of The GSMC.
Together, the group headed to The Singer Tavern in London to try spirits from across Asia, awarding medals as they went. Here are 10 of the standout submissions to this year’s competition, which might help you decide which expressions you want to add to your spirits collection next time you’re browsing the global speciality aisles.
Choya Extra Years Umeshu
As a Westerner, one of the biggest joys of exploring spirits from different regions is the flurry of new flavours and ingredients that are introduced to your palate. The Gold medal-winning Choya Extra Years is a great example of this.
Crafted exclusively from 100% Kishu-grown Nanko ume fruit – a Japanese apricot that is considered the highest-quality and most celebrated of the variety – the spirit is meticulously aged for more than two years, allowing the rich aroma and complex flavours of the ume fruit to fully develop.
The judging panel picked up on the spirit’s notes of “apricots, cherries and raisins”, with one noting the sweet liquid would make for “a refreshing Spritz option”.
Maya Pistola Añejo
Snapping up Gold medals across its portfolio in this year’s blind tasting, Maya Pistola Agavepura is India’s first 100% agave spirit. It is made from wild-growing Agave Americana, which thrives in the Deccan Plateau and is harvested at full maturity – between 8 to 14 years of age.
The agave hearts are steam-cooked in an autoclave to release natural sugars, then fermented in stainless steel vats. The resulting mash is double-distilled in a part-copper pot still to produce a smooth, refined spirit. This liquid is then transported to Goa, where it is aged and bottled completely free of additives or artificial colouring.
The brand’s añejo expression has been aged for over 14 months in virgin American white oak casks, and according to the panel, it boasts “elegant and sweet” notes on the nose, with “sweet golden syrup and a hint of marzipan on the palate; creamy to begin with and later leading to peppery spice.”
Camikara Cask Aged Rum 8YO
Taking home the first Master medal of this year’s blind tasting, Camikara Cask Aged Rum 8 Years Old has been inspired by the age-old practice of distilling cane juice to create the local brew, which is known as ‘Lahaan’ in Punjab, to reclaim the legacy of regional spirits and traditions of India.
The rum’s name is derived from the Sanskrit term for ‘liquid gold’, and it distinguishes itself as India’s first pure cane juice rum – a departure from the common practice of using molasses or by-products of sugarcane.
Having undergone an extensive ageing process of eight years, the 42.8% ABV sipping rum was celebrated by the panel for its “rich aroma, with treacle and vanilla and some candied orange”, with some enjoying notes of “Christmas cake, and lots of tropical flavours” on the palate. One judge noted that “the balance is just phenomenal.”
Ceylon Arrack
Ceylon Arrack was the second product sampled on judging day to be deemed worthy of a Master medal, with one judge describing the body and mouthfeel of this Sri Lankan craft spirit as “creamy, rich, and quite decadent”.
That same judge picked up notes of coconut and white chocolate pudding on the palate, alongside “citrus peel and vanilla paste, dried florals, and a touch of something starchy”.
Distilled from the flower of the coconut palm, Ceylon Arrack is gently aged in Hamilla wood, a native tree of Sri Lanka. While it was suggested this would make a great sipping spirit, the option to use it to “intensify a good hot chocolate or coffee, or even a Martini with a hint of dry vermouth” was something that brought excitement to the panel.
Rojak Gin
Otherside Subcontinental Whiskey
Shaped by the Indian subcontinent’s heat, seasons, terrain, and climate, and crafted with malts matured across the tropical region, Otherside Continental Whiskey brings with it depth, intensity, and a distinctive sense of place.
Finished through a Solera maturation system in charred ex-Bourbon barrels, the Gold medal-winning Otherside has been designed for modern drinking, and is said to be equally at home in a cocktail, a highball, or a straight pour, and our judges enjoyed it for its “malty, lightly spicy, with hints of elderflower and chamomile”.
Lanna
Sampled in the Speciality Spirits Made in Asia heat, Lanna was deemed worthy of a Gold medal for its “light and fruity aroma, with a fruity, clean palate and good texture”.
This premium, sustainably handcrafted 100% Thai rice spirit is born of the rich cultural heritage of Chiang Mai in northern Thailand, and crafted by a collective of Thailand’s top bartenders from renowned venues like Vesper and Rabbit Hole, to act as a versatile, cocktail-friendly foundation for contemporary mixology.
It is triple-distilled from organic Thai jasmine rice and sticky rice, yielding a silky, floral, and citrusy flavour profile.
Cashmir Vodka
Described by the judges as a “lovely clean and fresh” vodka that delivers “fruity, sweet, vanilla” notes when sipped, Cashmir Vodka, which is described as a celebration of India’s timeless heritage and artisanal craftsmanship, went home sporting a Silver medal at this year’s blind tasting.
Cashmir is India’s first organic vodka crafted from traditional winter wheat and glacial water sourced from the pristine Kashmir Valley. Inspired by the mystique of that valley, it is said to be ‘a tribute to a place that has stirred imaginations for centuries’.
Distilled seven times to achieve an exceptional level of clarity and smoothness, the resulting vodka is refined and velvety on the palate, boasting a clean finish.
Ensō Japanese Blended Whisky
Bringing together Japanese whiskies married and rested in the Kiyokawa Kanagawa Prefecture just west of Tokyo, Ensō is a 40% ABV blended finished in American oak barrels that has been named after the Zen circle, symbolising completeness and the circle of life.
Distilled in pot stills, it offers a smooth, highly approachable profile that shines neat, on the rocks, or in a highball, with notes of lemon blossom on the nose alongside a suggestion of smoke and bright citrus, underpinned by vanilla and caramel, alongside palate highlights of toasted oak and woody vanilla.
Dragon & Jade Chinese Baijiu
It was a Gold medal for Dragon & Jade Chinese Baijiu in what was the final tasting round of the competition, and if you’ve jumped on the matcha train over the last few years, this premium baijiu might be the spirit for you, as it offers a delicate balance of grainy sweetness, green apple, and matcha notes, making it versatile for both sipping neat and mixing into cocktails.
The judges liked the mix of “fruitiness on the palate with a little earthiness”, and described the product as a “gentle” example of what baijiu can offer.
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