review: nagasawa kobe #54 goshikiyama ochre

Let's take a look at one of the rarer inks in my collection!

This ink is quite hard to find! I had no idea it existed until I saw it in a swatch book at Plain Stationery, and of course I bought a sample instantly.

Nagasawa Kobe inks are made by Sailor and come in the old squat bottles. It doesn't come with an internal plastic reservoir. The label has an illustration of Kobe's skyline in the color of the ink. It's really cute, and I do enjoy these bottles. Because I bought a sample, Plain Stationery repackaged the ink in a small glass vial; above is my old bottle of Tokiwa-matsu.

Nagasawa Kobe Goshikiyama Ochre is a pinky-mauve color.

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Nagasawa Kobe Goshikiyama Ochre has quite a bit of water resistance. Not very much of it will fade if it comes in contact with water.

It also dries quite quickly. I had no issues with smudging on Kokuyo MIO paper after the 10 second mark.

There's a little bit of shading in the broad nib, and even less in the fine nib.

Goshikiyama Ochre has a little bit of shading on Tomoe River paper.

I keep thinking this ink is a dupe for J. Herbin Rouille D'ancre. They're sort of close, but definitely not the same. Rouille D'ancre is much pinker. Robert Oster Rose Gilt Tynte is more purple with silver shimmer. Ferris Wheel Press is much more mauve.

I had this ink in my Pelikan M205 with a broad nib. Goshikiyama Ochre flows very well in this pen without being too wet. I really like it! I'm super glad I bought a sample of this ink, and if I can find it in the bottle I would certainly buy the full thing.

Where to buy

I purchased this sample from Plain Stationery and Homeware.

• Vanness: bottle + sample