Cambodia’s distillers use invasive plants, green tech for top-shelf gin and rum

PHNOM PENH – Mr Ryuji Nukata pours the clear liquid slowly into the tumbler, his gaze never leaving the glass.

Until three years ago, he was working in the textile industry in Japan. Now, in this unassuming walk-up in Phnom Penh, Cambodia, he is creating Tropical Citrus, which was crowned the best flavoured gin at the 2023 World Gin Awards.

The global gin market is expected to reach US$22 billion (S$28.2 billion) by 2030, according to data by Maximize Market Research. Fans are clamouring for craft gins, unique flavours and brands like Mr Nukata’s Mawsim (

mawsim.shop

).

He did not set out to be a distiller. When he moved to Cambodia, his aim was to launch a paper and clothing recycling company. But as the research and development on his paper recycling company progressed, he learnt that one of the upshots of the paper recycling process was that it would create ethanol, the basis of gin.

He began to think about how he could make gin greener.

He considered water hyacinths, which are often in the news for clogging South-east Asia’s waterways. Locals dry the invasive plants and weave the leaves into household products such as baskets.

Once the plants were dry, Mr Nukata realised, he could burn them to create ethanol in the same way he burned the paper. “It was trial and error many times,” he says.

Spirits enthusiasts can now sample the gin made with water hyacinths and steeped with botanicals such as Battambang oranges, makrut limes and kumquats at his distillery filled with copper stills.

He sells his tropical-flavoured gin, as well as a version made with Kampot peppercorns and cardamom, in recycled teal-green bottles that visitors can turn into carafes or vases. He even makes his own quinine from bark of the Fever Tree. 

He is always at the distillery to make the gin, but if someone reserves one of the long wooden tables, he will open the doors and turn it into a speakeasy.

The locals sitting on camping chairs and playing draughts at the bottom of the stairs to the walk-up seem bemused that the speakeasy attracts so many foreigners – and it looks like it will attract many more.

Putting cashew fruit brandy on the map

A 30-minute drive across town is Seekers Spirits (

seekersspirits.com)

, run by married couple Marco Julia Eggert and Tania Unsworth. Both had worked in the hospitality industry.

After launching their gin brand in a shophouse near the Russian Market, a bazaar in the city, they turned a former textile factory on the edge of town into a Pinterest-worthy distillery that welcomes visitors to its leafy garden on weekends.

Their first gin was inspired by the blue butterfly pea plant that runs wild along the edge of their land, but they thought it was too early to launch with a blue-coloured spirit. So, the tipple they took to market was the aromatic and clear Mekong Dry Gin featuring pandan, Battambang green oranges and Khmer basil. 

The Mekong Dry Gin, which is created in either a copper still or the new futuristic Tesla-like still, has scooped awards from Singapore and San Francisco.

They have since expanded to launch Pandan Negroni, Lychee Martini and even a pastis. While it was popularised by the French, they wanted to make a star anise drink in the country where it was grown. 

“When we arrived in Cambodia nearly 13 years ago, we were surprised by the lack of quality craft spirits in the region at the time,” says Ms Unsworth, originally from the United Kingdom. Mr Eggert came from Spain. “We have amazing ingredients here and such rich stories to tell.”

Now, they are turning to other inventive ingredients with the creation of a cashew fruit brandy. The fruit is usually tossed away after the nut is removed, but Seekers has started bottling the golden liquid.

They also want Cambodia to be recognised for the spirit and are applying for a geographical indicator for the cashew fruit brandy, in the same way that champagne can be made only in France.  

Rum made with Kampot red pepper

But gin is not the only spirit being made in the Cambodian capital. In a quiet alleyway filled with palm trees and bougainvillea is where you will find Samai (

samaidistillery.com)

 rum made with a trio of Cambodian ingredients: sugar cane molasses, Kampot red pepper and organic honey from the Preah Vihear province. 

Venezuelan friends Daniel Pacheco and Antonio Lopez de Haro brewed their first rum on the site, when they still shared the space with a leather furniture-maker. The engineer and former bar owner knew that the hectares of sugar canes grown in Cambodia could be used to make rum. 

They teamed up with Cambodian master distiller Darachampich Moang, who studied rice wine production at university, to help bring their ideas to fruition.

It was not long before the leather furniture-maker needed to move out, as the rum distiller’s single cask rum matured in sherry barrels won instant plaudits. This is now their second building, where they distil some spirit, give tours, host events and open the bar to the public during the weekend.

The majority of their distilling is carried out at their new solar-powered facility nearby. 

Ms Moang says the abundant raw materials make Cambodia an excellent place for rum production. “The hot, humid climate creates ideal conditions for rum maturation, allowing rich and complex flavours to naturally develop in our spirits.”

Whether new companies will follow in their footsteps is a different question.

In April 2025, the Kiri Post reported that Cambodia’s Prime Minister Hun Manet will grant new licences only for alcohol companies willing to export, not target the domestic market. But it appears that what is driving these new spirits companies is the chance to show the rest of the world what Cambodia has to offer. 

Mr Nimol Leourng is the bar manager of Sora at Rosewood Phnom Penh hotel, which is on the World’s 50 Best Bars list, and he will often serve these spirits to guests.

“Our guests are often intrigued when they first discover spirits distilled right here in Phnom Penh,” he says.

“It’s always rewarding to see how botanicals and ingredients grown in Cambodia can produce such distinctive and refined spirits. Using these spirits allows us to not only create a delicious drink for guests, but also share the story of local flavours and creativity with them.”