143 BLOOD ORANGE

Sales start from 10:00 on Thursday, May 1st

This eau-de-vie is made using JAS organic Tarocco blood oranges from Nakagawa Farm, an organic citrus farm located on Omishima Island, a stopover on the Seto Inland Sea's Shimanami Kaido in the northernmost part of Ehime Prefecture.

The red flesh of blood oranges comes from anthocyanins, a type of polyphenol also found in red wine. It is also known to react with yeast to produce a fragrant compound called diacetyl.

We were able to pick up some blood oranges whose skin had cracked due to the dryness caused by the lack of water in the summer, followed by rapid growth due to the sudden rains that followed. The flesh peeking through the cracked skin was red, which looked a bit scary. However, that was the point, as blood oranges bathed in plenty of sunlight would turn even redder and produce a rich fragrance.

The peeled fruit is placed whole in a tank together with the squeezed juice, and the fruity aroma is brought out by carbonic maceration. After a week, the fruit is crushed by about 70% and then paddled to start vigorous fermentation. No sugar is added, and the wine is left to ferment for about a month until it is almost completely finished, after which it is distilled.

The peel was soaked in rice spirits, distilled, aged in stainless steel tanks, and then blended with orange fruit eaux-de-vie.

I feel like I've come closer to creating Stählemühle's Sicilian blood orange geist (spirit), which was one of my goals when I started mitosaya.

Let it cool slightly in the sun and enjoy it straight.

specification

Product: Brandy Style: Eau de vie and spirits blend Ingredients: Blood orange (Tarocco variety) (produced in Ehime Prefecture), rice spirits Alcohol content: 44%
Yeast: natural yeast Capacity: 100ml/500ml
Artwork by Masanao Hirayama / Light and Dark Getting Together (9776)

Limit two items per product (size) per person.

At the northern tip of Ehime Prefecture, nestled along the Seto Inland Sea's Shimanami Kaido, lies Omishima Island — home to Nakagawa Farm, a dedicated grower of organic citrus. This eau-de-vie is distilled from JAS-certified organic Tarocco blood oranges cultivated there.

The deep red flesh of these blood oranges is due to anthocyanins — a type of polyphenol also found in red wine. When interacting with wild yeast, anthocyanins can create diacetyl, a compound known for its buttery aroma.

The blood oranges used in this batch had a unique story: due to last summer's drought followed by sudden heavy rain, many of the fruits split open. We were able to take in these slightly “horror-like” fruits — with vibrant red interiors bursting through the cracked peel — and turn them into something special. Their intense exposure to sunlight deepened their color and intensified their rich, fragrant aroma.

We peeled the fruit and combined the whole oranges with freshly pressed juice in a tank, allowing carbonic maceration to coax out bright, fruity aromas. After about a week, we gently crushed about 70% of the fruit and stirred the mixture to start vigorous fermentation. With no added sugar, we let it ferment naturally for about a month before distilling.

Meanwhile, the orange peels were separately macerated in rice spirits, then distilled and aged in stainless steel tanks. Finally, we blended this with the distilled eau-de-vie from the fruit.

With this creation, we feel we've come a bit closer to one of our founding inspirations — the Moro Sicilian Blood Orange spirit made by Stählemühle. Enjoy this spirit slightly chilled, straight, under the sun.

SPECIFICATIONS

Item: Brandy
Style: Blend of eau-de-vie and spirit
Ingredients: Blood orange (Tarocco variety) from Ehime, rice spirits
Alcohol content: 44%
Yeast: Natural
Volume: 100ml/500ml
Artwork by Masanao Hirayama / Light and Dark Getting Together (9776)

Purchase quantity is limited to two items per product, per size.