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What Butterfly Pea Is (Clitoria Ternatea)
Blue in the bottle, pink in the glass. In contact with tonic, Gin Balena Pink changes colour thanks to Butterfly Pea (Clitoria ternatea), one of its nine botanicals.
Butterfly Pea is a flower native to Southeast Asia, particularly Thailand, Malaysia and India. It grows as a climbing plant and produces small flowers of an intense blue, almost indigo. In Asia, it has been used for centuries to make herbal teas, colour rice and decorate traditional dishes.
It is completely natural, edible, vegan and contains no synthetic additives. It is used in some of the world’s most iconic colour-changing gins, and it is precisely one of the ingredients behind the unique character of Gin Balena Pink.
Why the gin changes colour from blue to pink
The secret lies in a molecule: anthocyanin. It is a natural pigment found in many flowers, fruits and vegetables (blueberries, red cabbage, aubergines). Anthocyanin has a unique characteristic: it changes colour according to the pH of the liquid it is in.
- Environment: neutral (water) the pigment appears deep blue
- Environment: acidic (tonic water, lemon, ginger beer) it shifts to pink or purple
- Environment: alkaline (rare in cocktails) it tends toward green
When you pour tonic into Gin Balena Pink, the acidity of the drink meets the anthocyanins in Butterfly Pea and within seconds the liquid transforms before your eyes. It is not magic: it is natural science.
The 9 botanicals of Gin Balena Pink
Butterfly Pea is just one of the nine selected botanicals in our Italian craft gin. The others — juniper, coriander, cardamom, sweet orange, mandarin, ginger, helichrysum and Adriatic sea water — create a fresh, citrus, Mediterranean aromatic profile. Discover all the botanicals of Balena Pink.
How to serve Gin Balena Pink to see the colour change
To bring out the colour effect, we recommend that you:
- Fill a balloon glass with plenty of ice
- Pour 4 cl of Balena Pink Gin (you'll see the deep blue)
- Top up slowly with chilled premium tonic water
- Watch the liquid shift from blue to pink within seconds
- Garnish with an orange peel or a sprig of helichrysum
Want to try more creative recipes? Discover all our cocktails with Balena Pink Gin: from the Pink Mule to the Rimini Sunset, every drink is a chromatic spectacle.
More than a gin: an experience
Gin Balena Pink is not just a spirit: it is a small ritual. The moment when you pour the tonic and the colour changes becomes the heart of the experience, the gesture that turns a drink into a story to tell. A story born on the coast of Rimini, from the Adriatic Sea, carrying the magic of a distant flower and the strength of Italian craftsmanship.
Ready to see the transformation with your own eyes? Buy Balena Pink Gin and discover why it is the gin that knows when it is time to change.