“What do you mean it will change colour?” asked my mother who hadn’t had a sip of gin in her life but was still excited and amused. The first time I heard of Nisaki’s colour-changing gin, I was excited but also thought it was a marketing stunt. But upon trying it, my parents and I were equally amazed. The original colour of the newest gin in town was deep indigo. Add tonic water and it turns into a soft pink colour, water turns it a light shade of electric blue, and the gin turns violet when mixed with soda.
If this isn’t magic, we don’t what is! Founders Sanchit Agarwal, Nidhi Kedia, and Akhilesh Rajan explain the sorcery behind their latest invention in India.
This made-in-India gin comes from Project Peacock. The distillation process of this rice-based spirit is done in Goa at Adinco Distilleries in a copper pot in small batches. It is distilled in a batch of 200 litres and is made in the London dry style. The triple distilled base, by the time it reaches the bottle, ends up being distilled four times, making it smooth on the palate and not causing any throat burn.
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The trio share that the idea came to them through their personal experience with gin discovery in India. “The gin market in India has many clear gins that are trying to tell the story through complex botanicals, making the discovery a little intimidating. We set out to make the gin discovery fun and approachable,” they share. “With that in mind, we have also used botanicals that are accustomed to the Indian palate.”
Nisaki is distilled with 16 organic botanicals. The Macedonian juniper berries make the flavour less overpowering and “we have a tea blend in the earl grey style so that the tannins help the gin not stick to the palate.” The perfume-like whiff upon opening the bottle comes from their floral—rose and lavender—and citrus—three types of citrus peels—ingredients. The deep indigo colour is also because of the butterfly pea flower infused in the gin before bottling it up.
Co-founders Akhilesh Rajan, Nidhi Kedia, and Sanchit Agarwal. Photos: Nisaki
The co-founders have been ideating on the concept and product since 2022 but it was only last May when they began the execution. “The colour-changing is an all-natural phenomenon which occurs due to the property of the butterfly pea flower. It occurs due to a change in the PH balance,” the co-founders explain. “Adding citric acid turns it to a spectrum of pink. Soda being basic turns more violet and lilac whereas neutral water turns the gin to electric blue. Depending on how much citric acid, soda, or water is added, the colour will get lighter. For eg: if you add 30 ml of Nisaki and 60-70ml of tonic water, the colour will be light pink.
Nisaki, in Japanese means, benevolence, compassion, and kindness. “We have crafted the spirit with a lot of passion and love, hence the name,” the trio shares. The best way to enjoy Nisaki, according to the co-founders is with ice, soda, and a dash of lime—giving it a lovely lilac colour.
Nisaki gin is priced at ₹1849 for 750ml and is currently only available in Goa but should make its way to other parts of India and even globally in the next few years.
