Some say that it is not a good idea to compete with yourself. Others argue that that is the most beneficial kind of competition. I am in the latter group. When applied within the context of product development, it equates to a constant striving to improve on one’s already high standards, taking steps that are dictated by one’s own vision, as opposed to tweaking things in response to what some other guy in the market happens to be doing at the moment. To use a rather unusual analogy, it means that your product will be the Marilyn Monroe, instead of the Jayne Mansfield.
Such is the case with the good folks at Tokyo Hachioji Distillery. We have written about this wonderful distillery and its fine products before. If you missed those entries, please use the search bar to find them. Recently, I had the good fortune of tasting their prize-winning Elder Flower 47* gin. It won a gold medal at IWSC’s 2025 competition. I tasted Elder Flower 47 alongside Elder Flower (see previous entry) and found the gold-medal winner to be significantly better, but that does not tell you very much, does it? I will be a little more specific now.
On the palate, I found no appreciable difference between the two products, except for the higher alcohol content of 47 (47% versus 40%). The nose was a different matter entirely. Elder Flower 47 has all of the heady aromatics of the botanicals of Elder Flower, but they are magnified to a degree that appears to be exponential! This is a bouquet you will never forget.
*The word elderflower is customarily written as a compound. However, the distillery spells it thus.
Drinking Japan 