Asian Craft Spirits: Seven Countries Worth Knowing
For most of the last century, serious spirits meant Scotland, France or the Caribbean. That stopped being true some time ago. Japan proved a distillery could out-precision its teachers, India proved tropical heat could be an asset rather than a problem, and a generation of Southeast Asian distillers has since built gins around botanicals that simply don't grow anywhere else. Here's what each country is actually doing differently — and the bottle from each that makes the case.
What Each Country Does Differently
Not a ranking — a map. Every one of these traditions is built on something local that can't be copied elsewhere.
| Origin | Known For | The Local Ingredient or Method |
|---|---|---|
| Singapore | Craft gin built around the city's own food culture | Locally handcrafted, with real vanilla among the botanicals |
| Japan | Precision blending and seasonal botanicals | Sakura, yuzu, sencha and sansho pepper in gin; soft-water sites and still design in whisky |
| India | Fast tropical maturation and native botanicals | Unpeated Indian barley; coriander and vetiver grown in Rajasthan |
| Taiwan | Accelerated cask interaction in a subtropical climate | Heat and humidity that pull sherry-cask character out far faster than Scotland can |
| Sri Lanka | Spice-route botanicals in a London Dry frame | Ginseng and ingredients from Colombo's cinnamon gardens |
| Cambodia | Southeast Asian botanicals in a craft gin | Regional botanicals distilled in Phnom Penh |
| Thailand | Thai aromatics layered onto a classic gin base | Thai-sourced botanicals built for bright, aromatic G&Ts |
Singapore
The home team
Tanglin Black Powder Gin
$126.00 SGD
Tanglin was Singapore's first gin distillery, and Black Powder is its navy-strength expression — punchy enough to hold its shape in a Negroni, but smooth enough to sip. The obvious starting point for anyone curious about what Singapore distils.
Shop Tanglin →Japan
Precision and season
Suntory Roku Gin
$62.00 SGD
"Roku" means six — for six Japanese botanicals harvested across four seasons: sakura flower and leaf in spring, sencha and gyokuro tea in summer, sansho pepper in autumn, yuzu peel in winter. Fourteen botanicals in total, in a six-sided bottle.
Shop Roku Gin →
Nikka Miyagikyo Single Malt
$110.00 SGD
Founded in 1969 at the meeting of two rivers near Sendai, chosen specifically for its soft water. Steam-heated stills give it an elegant, orchard-fruit character — deliberately the gentler counterpart to Nikka's robust coastal distillery.
Shop Miyagikyo →India
Heat as an advantage
Amrut Fusion Single Malt
$102.00 SGD
The bottle that made the world take Indian single malt seriously — runner-up for Whisky of the Year in 2010. "Fusion" is literal: roughly a quarter Scottish peated barley, three quarters unpeated Indian. Bottled at 50% and not chill-filtered.
Shop Amrut Fusion →
Jaisalmer Indian Craft Gin
$86.00 SGD
Eleven botanicals, seven of them sourced from across India, redistilled in a traditional copper pot still. The coriander and vetiver come from the fields around Jaisalmer itself — vetiver being the peppery, earthy note you won't find in a London gin.
Shop Jaisalmer →Taiwan
Time, accelerated
Kavalan Oloroso Ex-Sherry Oak
$140.00 SGD
Founded in Yilan County in 2005 — young by Scottish standards, but Taiwan's subtropical climate pulls character out of a cask far faster. Matured entirely in Oloroso ex-sherry casks, at 46%, for dried fruit and dark chocolate depth.
Shop Kavalan Oloroso →Sri Lanka, Cambodia & Thailand
The new gin belt
Colombo No. 8 Gin
$74.00 SGD
Eight botanicals infused with ginseng, built around ingredients from Colombo's cinnamon gardens. A juniper-forward London Dry with a spice-route accent rather than a citrus one.
Shop Colombo No. 8 →
Royal Sedang 1888 Gin
$68.00 SGD
A craft gin distilled in Phnom Penh around Southeast Asian botanicals — and one of the few Cambodian spirits you'll find on a Singapore shelf at all. Built for a G&T with an Asian garnish.
Shop Royal Sedang →
Saneha Gin
$99.00 SGD
Thai-sourced botanicals layered onto a traditional gin base, with a concentrated, aromatic profile that holds up in a Martini as readily as an elevated G&T.
Shop Saneha →Pouring Them With Asian Food
These spirits were made in the same places as the food, which makes the pairings unusually forgiving. Twelve bottles, and what each one is actually for.
Suntory Roku Gin
$62.00 SGD
Pour it with: A G&T with yuzu peel and fresh ginger
The yuzu and sansho already in the gin meet the garnish halfway instead of fighting it.
Shop Now →
Suntory Hibiki Japanese Harmony
$142.00 SGD · 3 bottles $402.00
Pour it with: Yakitori or grilled skewers, in a tall highball
The highball is how Japan actually drinks whisky with food — soda lifts the mizunara sweetness and cuts through charred, salty grilling.
Shop Now →
Yamazaki 12 Year Old
$239.00 SGD · 3 bottles $702.00
Pour it with: Grilled unagi or teriyaki, or dark chocolate to finish
Mizunara-influenced incense and dried fruit stand up to sweet-savoury glazes that would flatten a lighter malt.
Shop Now →
Suntory The Chita
$88.00 SGD · 3 bottles $246.00
Pour it with: Karaage, tempura and anything fried — as a highball
Light, soft grain whisky with soda works like a squeeze of lemon: it resets the palate between bites.
Shop Now →
Nikka Miyagikyo Single Malt
$110.00 SGD
Pour it with: Sushi, sashimi or tempura — neat or as a highball
Elegant and unpeated, so it sits alongside delicate food rather than flattening it.
Shop Now →
Amrut Fusion Single Malt
$102.00 SGD
Pour it with: Indian food, aged Cheddar or dark chocolate
Light peat and 50% ABV stand up to spice that would swamp a gentler malt.
Shop Now →
Jaisalmer Indian Craft Gin
$86.00 SGD
Pour it with: A G&T alongside samosas, pakoras or a dry curry
Vetiver and Indian coriander give it an earthy, peppery base that echoes the masala on the plate.
Shop Now →
Kavalan Oloroso Ex-Sherry Oak
$140.00 SGD
Pour it with: Roast duck, blue cheese or sticky toffee pudding
Dried fruit and dark chocolate depth make it an after-dinner pour rather than a mealtime one.
Shop Now →
Colombo No. 8 Gin
$74.00 SGD
Pour it with: Spiced and curried dishes, in a tall G&T
Ginseng and cinnamon-garden botanicals echo the spices on the plate instead of competing with them.
Shop Now →
Tanglin Black Powder Gin
$126.00 SGD
Pour it with: A Negroni, or a G&T built with full-strength tonic
Navy strength means the botanicals survive dilution and bitter vermouth.
Shop Now →
Royal Sedang 1888 Gin
$68.00 SGD
Pour it with: A G&T with lemongrass or kaffir lime
Southeast Asian botanicals in the gin pick up regional garnishes a London Dry would leave stranded.
Shop Now →
Saneha Gin
$99.00 SGD
Pour it with: A Martini before a Thai meal, or an aromatic G&T
Concentrated Thai aromatics carry through a spirit-forward serve without needing much dilution.
Shop Now →What Makes Asian Craft Different
Three things keep coming up, and none of them are marketing.
Botanicals that grow nowhere else
Sakura, yuzu, sansho, vetiver, ginseng and Ceylon cinnamon aren't substitutes for European botanicals — they produce flavours a London Dry recipe simply cannot reach.
Climate as a production tool
Heat and humidity accelerate how spirit and cask interact. In India and Taiwan that turns a young whisky into a deep one far faster than a Scottish warehouse can.
No inherited rulebook
Without centuries of house style to protect, these distilleries make choices on merit — mixing peated and unpeated barley, or building a gin around tea.
Why Buy From Us
The same standard applies across the range, wherever the bottle was distilled.
Authorized distributor, not just stocked
Direct from the brand owner on much of our range, as an authorized distributor for major international spirits houses.
Duty-paid, always
Every bottle sold is duty-paid stock, with proper provenance from the point of sale.
Showroom viewing
See a bottle in person at 2 Sims Close before you commit — useful for the less familiar names on this page.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is there a gin made in Singapore?
Yes — Tanglin was Singapore's first gin distillery. Its Black Powder expression is bottled at navy strength, which is why bartenders reach for it in cocktails.
What are the six botanicals in Roku Gin?
Sakura flower and sakura leaf from spring, sencha and gyokuro tea from summer, sansho pepper from autumn, and yuzu peel from winter — six Japanese botanicals alongside eight traditional gin botanicals.
Why is Indian whisky matured faster than Scotch?
Heat and humidity speed up the interaction between spirit and cask, so a tropical climate develops cask character in years rather than decades. The same effect applies in Taiwan.
What made Amrut Fusion significant?
It was the first Indian single malt to win major international recognition, finishing runner-up for Whisky of the Year in 2010, and it blends roughly 25% Scottish peated barley with 75% unpeated Indian barley.
Is Kavalan a young distillery?
It was founded in 2005 in Yilan County, Taiwan. Its subtropical climate accelerates cask maturation, which is why its whiskies taste older than their years suggest.
Which Asian gin is best for a gin and tonic?
Roku with yuzu peel and ginger is the most approachable. For something stronger, Tanglin Black Powder holds its shape against a full-strength tonic; Colombo No. 8 suits spiced food.
Can you buy Cambodian or Thai gin in Singapore?
Yes — we carry Royal Sedang 1888 from Phnom Penh and Saneha from Thailand, both of which are rarely stocked on Singapore shelves.
What Asian spirit pairs with sushi or sashimi?
An unpeated Japanese single malt such as Nikka Miyagikyo, served neat or as a highball. Its elegant, orchard-fruit character sits beside delicate food instead of overwhelming it.
What food goes with Japanese whisky?
Grilled and fried food, mostly. A highball made with Hibiki Japanese Harmony or The Chita cuts through yakitori, karaage and tempura, while an unpeated single malt like Nikka Miyagikyo suits sushi and sashimi served neat.
What is a Japanese highball?
Whisky over ice topped with chilled soda water, usually around one part whisky to three or four parts soda. It's the standard way whisky is drunk with food in Japan, and it's why lighter grain whiskies like The Chita exist.
Is The Liquid Collection a wholesaler?
No — The Liquid Collection is a Singapore retailer of premium spirits and wine, selling directly to individual customers online and at the showroom.
Can I see these bottles before buying?
Yes. Our showroom at 2 Sims Close #02-10 is open by appointment, which is worth doing for the less familiar producers on this page.
Seven Countries, One Shelf
Distilled closer to home. And worth the trip.
Duty-paid stock, authorized-distributor sourcing and free islandwide delivery — across whisky, gin, cognac, rum, tequila, vodka and wine.
Shop the Full Range WhatsApp UsThe Liquid Collection is a Singapore retailer of premium spirits and wine. Showroom: 2 Sims Close #02-10, Singapore 387298 · sales@theliquidcollection.com · +65 9680 5856 · Legal drinking age 18, verified on delivery · Please drink responsibly.
