Kyoto-based artisan gin Ki No Bi, has launched the 2024 Kyoto Legacy Collection, a novel celebration of gin-making and centuries-old kimono craftsmanship, inspired by Japan’s oldest novel, The Tale of Genji.
Written over 1,000 years ago by Murasaki Shikibu, this Japanese literary classic captures the complexities of aristocratic life in Kyoto. Each bottle in the five-piece collection reflects the personality and seasonal spirit of one of the novel’s female characters.
Wrapped in silk textiles crafted by Kanoko, a historic kimono maker founded in 1889 in Kyoto’s Nishijin district, the bottles are adorned with intricate patterns created through a weaving technique dating back to the 5th century. The textiles resemble obi kimono sashes, handwoven on traditional looms, with colours and designs tailored to echo the flavours of the gin.
Wrapped in silk textiles crafted by kimono maker Kanoko, the bottles
are adorned with intricate patterns created through a
weaving technique of hand-dyed threads dating back to the 5th century…
Premium Japanese gin inspired by The Tale of Genji
According to Jun Tomita, a Design Director for the Ki No Bi Legacy Collection, the patterns reflect the novel’s heroines, with colours evoking the four seasons. Hand-braided, tasselled cords enhance the traditional Japanese aesthetic.
“We aimed to keep the design minimal, while decorating the bottle with one of the most intricate obi in Japan, maintaining its actual size. The obi cords, intentionally designed to be feminine, evoke Miyabi, the elegant beauty of Kyoto.”
The bottles are presented in a luxurious kiribako box, handmade from paulownia wood. The lid features a hangi woodblock pattern from Kira Karacho, Japan’s oldest karakami atelier, dating to 1624.
The Kyoto Legacy Collection comprises four gins and one liqueur. Known for its small-batch production, Ki No Bi uses a rice spirit base and locally sourced botanicals like yuzu, sansho pepper, and gyokuro tea, all harvested at their seasonal peak.
Each of six botanical categories (base, citrus, tea, herbal, spice, fruity & floral) is distilled individually, then blended to achieve Ki No Bi’s signature profile, a refreshing, aromatic spirit with warm notes of ginger spice.
Each of the 125 sets of the Kyoto Legacy Collection 2024 is uniquely numbered, and priced at €1,500. While sales will primarily take place in Japan, global shipping can be arranged through the Kyoto Distillery team upon request.
More readily available, but no less special, Ki No Bi Kyoto Dry gin is available from Master of Malt, with prices starting at £45.
Christmas is coming, and Master of Malt and Drinks by the Dram are ready with a new collection of spirits advent calendars, with 30ml wax-sealed drams behind every door. The calendars cover everything from classic Scotch and Japanese whisky to gin, rum and vodka, and the vast majority of the included spirits are new for…
The UK’s smallest pub is packing its bags for Japan, with The Nutshell from Bury St Edmunds being recreated inside an Osaka department store this October. For two weeks, a little piece of Suffolk will be making an unlikely appearance in Japan. The Nutshell, widely recognised as the UK’s smallest pub, is being recreated inside…
Japan House London is set to turn heads this autumn with Tradition/Rebellion: Coming‑of‑Age Style in Kitakyushu, Japan, a new exhibition celebrating one of Japan’s most flamboyant fashion subcultures. Opening November 11 2026, the show brings the extraordinary style of Kitakyushu’s Coming‑of‑Age Ceremony to Kensington High Street, where platform sandals, fur‑trimmed kimono and gravity‑defying hair will…
Kyoto-based artisan gin Ki No Bi, has launched the 2024 Kyoto Legacy Collection, a novel celebration of gin-making and centuries-old kimono craftsmanship, inspired by Japan’s oldest novel, The Tale of Genji.
Written over 1,000 years ago by Murasaki Shikibu, this Japanese literary classic captures the complexities of aristocratic life in Kyoto. Each bottle in the five-piece collection reflects the personality and seasonal spirit of one of the novel’s female characters.
Wrapped in silk textiles crafted by Kanoko, a historic kimono maker founded in 1889 in Kyoto’s Nishijin district, the bottles are adorned with intricate patterns created through a weaving technique dating back to the 5th century. The textiles resemble obi kimono sashes, handwoven on traditional looms, with colours and designs tailored to echo the flavours of the gin.
Premium Japanese gin inspired by The Tale of Genji
According to Jun Tomita, a Design Director for the Ki No Bi Legacy Collection, the patterns reflect the novel’s heroines, with colours evoking the four seasons. Hand-braided, tasselled cords enhance the traditional Japanese aesthetic.
“We aimed to keep the design minimal, while decorating the bottle with one of the most intricate obi in Japan, maintaining its actual size. The obi cords, intentionally designed to be feminine, evoke Miyabi, the elegant beauty of Kyoto.”
The bottles are presented in a luxurious kiribako box, handmade from paulownia wood. The lid features a hangi woodblock pattern from Kira Karacho, Japan’s oldest karakami atelier, dating to 1624.
The Kyoto Legacy Collection comprises four gins and one liqueur. Known for its small-batch production, Ki No Bi uses a rice spirit base and locally sourced botanicals like yuzu, sansho pepper, and gyokuro tea, all harvested at their seasonal peak.
Each of six botanical categories (base, citrus, tea, herbal, spice, fruity & floral) is distilled individually, then blended to achieve Ki No Bi’s signature profile, a refreshing, aromatic spirit with warm notes of ginger spice.
Each of the 125 sets of the Kyoto Legacy Collection 2024 is uniquely numbered, and priced at €1,500. While sales will primarily take place in Japan, global shipping can be arranged through the Kyoto Distillery team upon request.
More readily available, but no less special, Ki No Bi Kyoto Dry gin is available from Master of Malt, with prices starting at £45.
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Christmas is coming, and Master of Malt and Drinks by the Dram are ready with a new collection of spirits advent calendars, with 30ml wax-sealed drams behind every door. The calendars cover everything from classic Scotch and Japanese whisky to gin, rum and vodka, and the vast majority of the included spirits are new for…
Why the UK’s smallest pub is being recreated inside a Japanese department store
The UK’s smallest pub is packing its bags for Japan, with The Nutshell from Bury St Edmunds being recreated inside an Osaka department store this October. For two weeks, a little piece of Suffolk will be making an unlikely appearance in Japan. The Nutshell, widely recognised as the UK’s smallest pub, is being recreated inside…
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Japan House London is set to turn heads this autumn with Tradition/Rebellion: Coming‑of‑Age Style in Kitakyushu, Japan, a new exhibition celebrating one of Japan’s most flamboyant fashion subcultures. Opening November 11 2026, the show brings the extraordinary style of Kitakyushu’s Coming‑of‑Age Ceremony to Kensington High Street, where platform sandals, fur‑trimmed kimono and gravity‑defying hair will…
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