Craft Gin 'HAKUBA GIN' Recording Hakuba's Forest through Aroma Selected as Finalist for the World's Premier Design and Advertising Award, 'The 105th NY ADC Awards'

Shinto Tsushin Co., Ltd. (Headquarters: Chuo-ku, Tokyo / Nagoya City, Aichi Prefecture, President: Tetsuya Tani) is pleased to announce that the craft gin 'HAKUBA GIN', which utilizes wild plants native to Hakuba Village in Nagano Prefecture as botanicals, has been selected as a finalist at the 105th ADC Annual Awards.

The NY ADC Awards, established in 1921, is the world's longest-running design and advertising award. It is an international award celebrating outstanding craftsmanship and creativity across a wide range of fields including advertising, digital media, graphic design, and packaging design. Organized by The One Club for Creativity, it is known as a prestigious award that creators around the world aim for as the highest honor.

Nominated Categories (3 Entries)

Category | Subcategory Design for Good | Packaging Design Packaging Design | Brand Partnership Packaging Design | Sustainable / Eco-friendly - Single

About 'HAKUBA GIN'

This product was co-developed with distillation startup Ethical Spirits Co., Ltd., based on the unique concept of recording and delivering the 'current state' of Hakuba's forest, which changes moment by moment due to climate change, in the form of aroma. A portion of the sales will be used for nature conservation activities in Hakuba Village, aiming to realize a cycle of protecting nature while enjoying the blessings of the forest.

Product Overview

Product Name: HAKUBA GIN Volume: 375ml Alcohol Content: 43% Price: 5,000 yen (excluding tax) Release Date: Wednesday, February 18, 2026 Sales Channels: Select restaurants in Hakuba Village, E-commerce sites Manufacturer: Ethical Spirits Co., Ltd. Distributor: Shinto Tsushin Co., Ltd.

E-commerce Sales Page: https://shop.ethicalspirits.jp/products/hakuba_gin Project WEB Site: https://cdstudio.jp/hakuba-gin/ NY ADC Official Site: https://adcawards.org/

Package Features

1. Label Design Recording the 'Now' of the Forest The label indicates the date, location (latitude/longitude), and temperature when the botanicals were collected. It 'records' the state of the forest on that day in the form of gin.

2. Fantastic Bottle Design Showing the Forest Through the Gin The photograph used for the label was taken of the actual forest scenery where the botanicals were collected. By attaching a double-sided printed label to the back of the bottle, a fantastic design is realized where you can view the forest scenery through the liquid of the gin.

3. Special Book-Type Package Using 'Oak Wilt' Wood A book-type package was created utilizing wood damaged by the 'oak wilt' disease, which has become a problem in Hakuba Village in recent years. It contains information for deeply understanding the botanicals and the thoughts of nature conservation embedded in HAKUBA GIN. * The book-type package can currently be seen at select restaurants in Hakuba Village. It is not available for general sale.

A Collaboration Born from GREEN WORK HAKUBA

The catalyst for the creation of HAKUBA GIN was 'GREEN WORK HAKUBA' (a project co-hosted by CIRCULAR DESIGN STUDIO., a specialized circular economy team within Shinto Tsushin Co., Ltd., and the Hakuba Village Tourism Bureau, where local businesses and external partner companies gather to create the future of Hakuba Village starting from a circular economy). Ethical Spirits Co., Ltd. participated in this event, leading to this collaboration in gin manufacturing with the desire to convey the splendor of Hakuba Village's nature and the hope for its sustainability.

CIRCULAR DESIGN STUDIO.

A co-creation project team tackling social issues under the theme 'Brightening and enjoyably changing the world through the circular economy'. They support the promotion of the circular economy for companies and municipalities from both the perspectives of circular economy expertise and creativity. CIRCULAR DESIGN STUDIO.: https://cdstudio.jp/

Manufacturing Partner

Ethical Spirits Co., Ltd. (The Ethical Spirits) A distillation startup broadcasting a new manufacturing culture through craft gin that draws out the value of unused materials. They are working towards realizing a circular society through their unique approach of regenerative distillation. ht