Top trends from ProWine Hong Kong 2025
From Hong Kong-made spirits to Indian rice wine and the rise of international bubbles, Eloise Feilden breaks down the hottest trends from this year’s ProWine Hong Kong trade fair.
Looking local
For a region with such a long history of trading high-end wine and spirits, Hong Kong boasts only gin distilleries of its own: Two Moons Distillery and the Hong Kong Craft Distilling Co. Even so, the two local producers were keen to show what Hong Kong can offer the craft spirits world, though through quite different approaches.
Two Moons, Hong Kong’s first gin distillery which launched in 2019, is focused on producing sipping gins and currently boasts three flavours — its Signature Dry Gin, a citrus-forward Calamansi Gin and a herbal tea shop-inspired Five Flowers Tea Gin.
The distillery’s aim is to celebrate Hong Kong through its use of local flavours, and co-founder Ivan Chang is careful about picking just the right ingredients to reflect the best of both the city and the brand. He explained that on the search for a fourth flavour, the team considered a bubble tea-inspired gin, but ultimately decided it didn’t fit with the distillery’s image. Still on the hunt for a fourth expression, Chang said he remains confident that “somehow the path will fall into place”.
For the Hong Kong Craft Distilling Co, experimenting with flavour is at the heart of the brand. Nic Law, the company’s co-founder, explained that, much like with Two Moons, all the flavours are inspired by Hong Kong. The difference is therefore in the execution; the Hong Kong Craft Distilling Co is more focused on mixology, providing the on-trade with cocktail kegs and experimenting with aged gins.
Law said the fun is in being able to play around with the gins, experimenting with Hong Kong flavours — everything from soy sauce to a variety of vinegars — to “make something from the city, like us”.
Talking cultural traditions
It wasn’t just Hong Kong-based businesses celebrating their roots at this year’s ProWine Hong Kong. Dr Dipankar Laboratories is an Assam-based company producing Indian rice wine.
Founded in 2021, the company is yet to release any of its products to market, but is preparing to debut its rice wine, Apong, inspired by the traditional drink of the Mising people. Traditionally made with 108 local herbs and spices, the team behind the new brand are combining 25 herbs in their products, with the aim of bringing this local tradition to the world.
