Diane Benjamin
Kanpeki Vodka from Milk Street Distillery. Kanpeki is a Japanese word that means 'perfection.' The vodka is made of polished grains of white rice, and the distillery owners wanted it to have a Japanese look. We were able to commission calligraphy from a master calligrapher, Tsuyoshi Takemori, who I was put in touch with by Ms. Kamimura of the Japan Society in New York City. I drew a cherry blossom branch and refined it in the computer.
Here is the calligraphy by Mr. Takemori.
First, I drew a rough sketch of the cherry blossom branch.
And then I refined the sketch. It is meant to resemble a woodcut.
Here are the bottles after being filled at the distillery.
The following bottles are first rounds. The pink was too intense for the distillers. We chose a plum color instead.
Another first round concept bottle.
A third first round concept bottle.
