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Chloe Loung

It all started with a couple of happy-hour beers back in 2017.
Nicholas Law, then a corporate lawyer who hated his job, sat across from his childhood friend, Jeremy Li, who had just got off work that day.
“We were just catching up, talking about what’s next and everything. That’s when the idea sort of came up: should we open a bar?” Law recalls.
The idea quickly evolved into a more audacious goal.
“And then I thought, you know, wouldn’t it be really cool to have your own brand?”

Hong Kong did not have its own spirits distillery at the time. By the end of 2019 it had two, with NIP Distilling launching on the heels of Two Moons Distillery.
Now, nearly nine years after that conversation, NIP Distilling produces some of Hong Kong’s most decorated gin from its location tucked away in an industrial building in Quarry Bay.
The brand’s latest triumph – its signature Exotic City Gin won a double gold medal at the 2025 San Francisco World Spirits Competition – marks the culmination of a journey that has been anything but easy.
Piece by piece
Law and Li were a two-man team with everything on the line who had to build their distillery from the ground up.
“When we ordered and received the actual copper still from Germany, it came in parts, and the technicians couldn’t fly in. We assembled the whole thing ourselves,” Law laughs. “They didn’t even give us a manual. It was just 52 different photos!”

This brand’s English name, which stands for “Not Important Persons”, epitomises its underdog spirit. Its Chinese name, mou ming si, literally translates as “person with no name”, in reference to Hong Kong teachers writing the phrase on any schoolwork submitted without a name on it.
“We believe that even if you don’t have a VIP status, even if you’re entirely nameless, you always have the potential to create something meaningful,” Law says. “Anyone can be a ‘Not Important Person’ and still pursue something they’re passionate about.”
“It’s all run by the two of us,” Li says. “We went to every single MTR stop looking for places to rent, we applied for the licence and talked to so many government departments. We even did this internship for a month at a very small local distillery in Scotland.”
Determined to learn the craft inside and out, the two embarked on an international tour, stopping anywhere that would welcome them. They visited distilleries in Australia and Europe, learning techniques, traditions, management and sales tactics under master craftsmen.
Distilled focus
With every expert they met, their focus sharpened. They were not interested in making just another gin; they wanted to create a spirit that tasted distinctly of Hong Kong. They did this by weaving in local botanicals and flavours that spoke of the city’s unique terroir and culinary culture: think traditional teas such as Longjing and da hong pao, tangerine peels, ginger, and osmanthus.
“And it’s always local everything. Local citrus, local honey, local coriander. We wanted it to really be ‘Hong Kong’ in every way,” Li says.
“The goal is to show what Hong Kong is to every single corner of the world.”

This philosophy is embedded in every detail. The calligraphy on their original logo design is by legendary Hong Kong artist Wah Gor, whose brushstrokes have graced both iconic movie posters and street signage.
“We cold-called him and told him our story,” Law says. “He is this uncle figure who really supports local guys trying to start something.”
The artwork on the playful labels of their latest line, Catnip Tea Gin, is by local illustrator Kathy Lam, better known as Dawning Crow. The previous limited-edition collection, 800 Million, showcased mahjong-themed bottles inspired by Fat Choi Spirit, the classic 2002 Lunar New Year film starring Andy Lau and Gigi Leung.
Even the logo for the distillery’s parent company, Hong Kong Craft Distilling, is infused with meaning. Its design subtly hints at the Chinese words for “mountain” and “water” to represent the region’s natural scenery.
Overcoming challenges
Despite NIP’s promising beginnings, things were made difficult when the launch of its first gin, in December 2019, coincided with the Hong Kong protests. Then the Covid-19 pandemic shattered Law and Li’s plans.
NIP pivoted to focusing on online sales and has become a key spirits supplier to Hong Kong’s hospitality industry. Its gins are used in cocktails at numerous award-winning bars, restaurants and five-star hotels, and the brand has been involved in private-label projects as well, making exclusive gin expressions for specific hospitality partners.
NIP also offers its own proprietary draft cocktail system to these locations, serving high-quality draft gin and tonic on tap.

The brand’s products are now stocked at major retailers outside Hong Kong, including in mainland China and Singapore. In 2025, NIP gin became the first locally distilled spirit to be sold at Hong Kong International Airport’s duty-free stores.
The distillery was an early adopter of EcoSpirits closed-loop technology, a circular-economy packaging system for premium spirits and wine. It distributes its products to bars and hotels in durable, reusable 4.5-litre (9.5-pint) containers, which are then collected, sanitised and refilled, dramatically reducing single-use glass waste.
Big dream, small team
Despite all this, the distillery is still run by just Law and Li, who have both made it their full-time job.
“We haven’t hired anyone permanently, and we have some part-timers to help with sticking on labels or cutting tangerine peels, which is just more mundane and takes a bit of time. Even that stuff we used to do ourselves,” Law says.
“And that is even more so why everything was a gamble. We’re not rich guys; it was a huge risk.”
Many people in Hong Kong “don’t really like what they do”, Law says. “They’re just doing it purely to survive, to pay for rent, to do all that stuff, because it’s so expensive to survive here, right? So actually, a lot of people don’t really understand why they’re doing what they’re doing.
“We want to show that as long as you take that leap of faith, you can do whatever you want, even in a place like Hong Kong.”


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NIP Distilling founders Jeremy Li (left) and Nicholas Law are pictured at their gin distillery in Hong Kong’s Quarry Bay neighbourhood. The pair, who built the brand from the ground up, are seeing their tipple take off in Hong Kong and beyond. Photo: Elson Li

Childhood friends Li (left) and Law began talking about setting up their own distillery over happy-hour beers. Photo: Elson Li

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Chandu’s Mata Hari cocktail is named after a Dutch dancer and courtesan. Photo: Facebook/Chandu

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For its Korean Joseon dynasty-inspired menu, the interiors of Junior the Pocket Bar featured dragons. Photo: Philipp Meier

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Lifestyle

Food & Drink

Nicholas Law and Jeremy Li conceived NIP Distilling in 2017. Now their gin is winning international awards and showing ‘what Hong Kong is’


Nicholas Law and Jeremy Li conceived NIP Distilling in 2017. Now their gin is winning international awards and showing ‘what Hong Kong is’.


Wine and Spirits

Entrepreneurs

Hong Kong

Hong Kong’s NIP Distilling founders on their ‘leap of faith’ to make distinctly local gin

.css-1c6uqr6{color:inherit;font-weight:inherit;font-size:inherit;font-family:inherit;line-height:inherit;overflow-wrap:break-word;}Nicholas Law and Jeremy Li conceived NIP Distilling in 2017. Now their gin is winning international awards and showing ‘what Hong Kong is’

Nicholas Law and Jeremy Li conceived NIP Distilling in 2017. Now their gin is winning international awards and showing ‘what Hong Kong is’