First Impressions
Cambridge Japanese Gin was the first gin in the world to use exclusively Japanese botanicals — launched in 2014 before the Japanese gin boom. Shiso leaf, yuzu, sansho pepper, cucumber and sesame seeds join juniper, each vacuum-distilled individually at low temperature to preserve their raw, delicate flavours before blending.
Tasting
The nose delivers aromatic pepper, zesty citrus and soft vegetal cucumber with fresh ginger. On the palate, drying spiciness balanced by clean cucumber and peppermint — lemon pith with earthy sansho and juniper, floral and light with savoury depth. The finish is long and expressive with earthy juniper and sansho lingering alongside yuzu brightness.
The Bottom Line
Cambridge Japanese Gin earns a 9 for being genuinely groundbreaking. The individual vacuum distillation of each botanical creates remarkable clarity, and the Japanese ingredients — especially shiso and sansho — bring umami and savoury notes that European botanicals cannot replicate. At £64 it is a premium investment, but this is a gin that changed the conversation about what gin could be.
