Seven days of maceration before the still is switched on is a long wait by modern standards, and it is the decision that shapes this bottle. At the Akita Distillery on Honshu, yuzu, juniper, liquorice root, angelica root, coriander seed and matcha sit together in the base spirit for a full week before distillation, then the result is brought to 43% ABV with water from the Ou Mountains. It has taken Gold at the Global Gin Masters in both 2022 and 2023.

Yuzu dominates the aroma and does so with more depth than a quick infusion tends to give: bright at the top, but with a rounder, more perfumed body underneath, and the faint bitterness of the peel rather than the sharpness of the juice. Matcha is the quiet partner, contributing a green, powdery tannin that runs beneath the citrus and gives the middle its grip. Liquorice root softens the edges without sweetening anything, angelica keeps the base dry, and coriander adds a warm seed note that bridges the two halves. The palate is clean, herbal and floral at once, with a long citrus tail. The Ou Mountains water leaves the texture soft, which flatters a gin this citrus-driven. Two consecutive Gold medals suggest the slow maceration is reaching something a quicker method would leave behind.

A neutral tonic is essential, because sugar erases the matcha before it touches anything else. Use plenty of ice and go easy on the garnish: yuzu peel if you can find it, otherwise a simple lemon twist, with nothing sweet standing alongside it. It also makes an unusually good highball with soda, which lets the tea come through with much less effort, and it holds its shape neatly in a Gimlet. It signs off bright and green, the matcha tannin lasting after the yuzu lifts.