East Side Distillery: A rising star in the spirits industry

Born in 2021, East Side Distillery has quickly become a name to watch in the spirits industry. In an interview with Bizz Buzz, Victor De Benito, the company's Head Distiller & Global Brand Ambassador, shares insights into the company's innovative spirits. "Our journey began in 2021, blending the rich traditions of India and Japan to create exceptional products like Doja gin, Nomad Oscuro rum, and Portal gin. Each brand reflects our commitment to quality and innovation," says Victor.

Founded by a family connecting India and Japan, East Side Distillery's first launch, Doja gin, combines botanicals from both countries and is available in India, Sri Lanka, and the Maldives. 2023 saw the release of Portal gin, a classic London Dry gin, and Nomad Oscuro, a spiced rum aged in Indian oak and finished with Japanese Hinoki wood. These brands have garnered gold medals at international competitions in 2024, demonstrating their excellence

How has East Side Distillery evolved since its inception? How is Doja Gin faring?

East Side Distillery was born in 2021, as a project of a mixed family that lived between India and Japan. They wanted to start a business in the spirits industry and their first commercial launch was Doja gin, a gin that combines botanicals sourced from Japan and India.

Since its inception, Doja has been available in India, Sri Lanka and Maldives. In 2023 East Side Distillery released Portal, a classic London Dry Gin, and Nomad Oscuro, an all-time winner spiced rum that combines ingredients from Japan, India and Jamaica. All 3 commercial brands have won gold medals at international competitions in 2024 such the Asian Masters or the Rum Masters. We are working to place our brands across more international markets and we will release updates

What is the impact of local ingredients including water on the flavour profile of the spirits produced at the distillery?

The ingredients and method of production make all the difference in the appearance and taste of our spirits. The alcohols that we source for making gin, and rum are of international quality standards, as well as our botanicals. All water that we use in our spirits is passed through a de-ionization process and fine filtration. This removes particles of 1 micrometer in size as well as most minerals present in the water. In this manner we can say the water is ‘pure.’ For Doja gin all botanicals are imported from Japan, from across India, and from Europe, in the case of juniper berries.

What are the other new brands in your portfolio?

In 2023 we released Nomad Oscuro, a three-year-old rum spiced with Hinoki wood chips. The rum is aged for three years in Indian oak, next it is finished in ex-Jamaican rum barrels, and last the rum is infused with Hinoki, a cypress tree native to Japan which gives citrus and spice notes to the rum. Nomad Oscuro received a gold medal at the Rum Cachaca Masters 2024 competition. East Side Distillery also launched Portal gin, a classic London Dry gin distilled using 10 botanicals that achieve a wonderful balance between juniper, earth, spice, herbal and citrus notes. And all the botanicals are from various parts of India. Portal was awarded a gold medal at the Asian Masters contest in May 2024.

What is your product strategy?

We normally carry out a market study to understand what spirits are currently in demand and what spirits will be the next trend in the short term. Next, we analyze the financial feasibility of launching a new brand.

Our product strategy at East Side Distillery revolves around crafting high-quality spirits that cater to a range of consumer preferences while leveraging our expertise, innovation, and brand identity to drive growth and market differentiation. We normally achieve this through market studies and then we analyse the financial feasibility of launching a new brand.

One key aspect of our product strategy is innovation. We continuously strive to introduce new and exciting spirits that resonate with evolving consumer trends and preferences. Whether it’s experimenting with unique flavor profiles, exploring innovative production techniques, or collaborating with industry partners, we are dedicated to staying at the forefront of innovation in the spirits industry.

In addition to innovation and brand differentiation, we prioritiae quality and craftsmanship in everything we do. From sourcing the finest ingredients to employing skilled distillers (the company brought me to Goa from London!) and adhering to rigorous production standards, we are committed to upholding the highest standards of quality and ensuring that every bottle of East Side Distillery spirit delivers an exceptional drinking experience.

Besides managing our company-owned brands, East Side Distillery is also a contract-distilling business with more than 20 recipes already available for external clients. We offer the full range of product creation: from concept development to commercial product ready for dispatch. The strategy we follow here is to understand the brand story of the client and the drinking experience that they want to deliver to their target market. Next, we agree on amounts to manufacture and cost. The final result is their product on shelves.

How do you infuse premiumness in your products?

All brands of East Side Distillery are aimed at creating a premium experience at the point of purchase and during consumption. To create a high-end experience first we study the market segment that we wish to target. Next we work to understand how our market target perceives premiumness and how we can align our branding, market strategy, and product science to their understanding of premium. Then, at the stage of launch we work to create awareness of the brands and organise events where both trade and consumers can taste our spirits and understand how they are made and why they are premium. I am certified spirits educator with the Wine & Spirits Education Trust (WSET), one of the world’s leading academic institutions around wines and spirits, so sharing knowledge is something I enjoy.

In which States are your products available?

Nomad spiced rum and Portal London Dry gin are available in Goa and Mumbai. Doja gin is currently available in Goa, Mumbai, Pune, and Delhi. You can also find it at duty-free stores in Mumbai, Delhi, Bangalore, Hyderabad, Trivandrum. Outside India, Doja is available in Japan, Sri Lanka, and Maldives.

What have been the challenges of creating brands and bringing them to the market?

Creating brands and successfully bringing them to the market in the alcohol industry presents several unique challenges, particularly for a business that has launched multiple brands of spirits over a relatively short period. Here are some of the key challenges we’ve encountered:

Essentially cause and effect: In the fiercely competitive alcohol market, where numerous established brands and newcomers vie for consumer attention, breaking through the clutter and gaining visibility is a significant challenge. To stand out, each of our spirits brands offers unique flavor profiles, captivating brand narratives, and eye-catching packaging designs. However, achieving effective brand differentiation amidst this crowded landscape demands strategic finesse and creative ingenuity, ensuring that our compelling brand stories resonate with consumers and distinguish us from competitors.

Marketing and promotion: Effective marketing and promotion are essential for building brand awareness and driving sales. With alco-beverage being a regulated space, it becomes important to develop surrogate marketing avenues as well. With our portfolio now boasting of three gold medal winning spirits, it’s advisable for us to allocate appropriate budgets and marketing spends for each product as they are each positioned uniquely in the market.

Consumer education and tasting experience: Educating the traders and consumers about our brands and providing opportunities for them to taste and experience our spirits firsthand is crucial for building brand loyalty and driving repeat purchases. I run tasting events, sampling programs, and educational initiatives.

Despite these challenges, East Side Distillery is committed to a mission of creating exceptional spirits brands and bringing them to market. By continuously innovating, adapting to market dynamics, and leveraging our strengths as a company, we are confident in our ability to overcome obstacles and achieve success in the competitive business industry.

What marketing initiatives are you planning to grow the brand?

We run market campaigns across multiple channels on a daily basis: trade events, social media, on trade, off trade and consumer events. Our brands attend events with the public, such as the polo tournaments held in Mumbai in 2024 and the sponsorship of some of the sessions held by the music organization MilkmanKind. East Side Distillery recently attended Pro-wine in Singapore, to attract importers, to expand our presence throughout South and East Asia. Our brands continue to appear in trade and consumer events.

How strong is the company financially?

East Side Distillery is an independent family-owned business. Sanjiv Anand, founder and CEO of an international consulting firm is the main investor. Of course we have a team of financial experts, including the advice of a former CEO of a leading spirits business whose presence has solidified our company credibility.

Have you planned any special promotions for the upcoming festival season?

Our flagship product is Doja which is an Indo-Japanese gin with botanicals sourced from Japan and India. To that extent, we have an entire calendar prepared for the entire year with the theme of various Japanese festivals. We want to stick to our foundation of an Indo-Japanese craft spirit embodying two cultures in one sip. With Portal and Nomad Oscuro being new entrants to our portfolio, we seek to establish these brands within the ambit of their brand positioning. That may include, some large-scale sampling events like Lil Flea Mumbai which we participated in towards the end of March only with these two brands to a super response, and establishing similar themes on the digital marketing side as well. We will continue to explore more avenues to position each of these products uniquely, both domestically and globally.