Keep it real, all you flavoured gin distillers. By Susy Atkins
It’s hard to move for flavoured gins, and that’s not necessarily a good thing. I’ve tasted some awful additions to my favourite spirit of late – confected, artificial and air-freshener pungent. As for some of the concepts: pink glitter marshmallow gin, Brussels sprout gin or ant gin, anyone? Happily there are other, more-than-decent flavoured versions around that still taste discernibly of juniper, gin’s main botanical, thus remaining sufficiently, well, ginny. A flavoured gin clearly has specific tastes of other ingredients, not just the classic London Dry botanicals, but whatever those flavours are they should be delivered in a well-balanced spirit that’s actually appealing to drink, not just a gimmick.
Spirits writer Joel Harrison, who with co-author Neil Ridley has just published the excellent World Atlas of Gin (Mitchell Beazley, £25), agrees. “It’s all about retaining a heart of juniper, so that the spirit is gin, not flavoured vodka. If a gin label says ‘strawberry and basil’ I want to taste both with real clarity alongside the juniper. I’ve tasted too many with synthetic undertones.”
Harrison points out that a gin liqueur is a different creature to a flavoured gin; while a gin must be at least 37% ABV, a gin liqueur can be lower in alcohol and tends to be much sweeter, even though sloe or damson gin liqueur is often very delicious. I’ll be testing the best fruit liqueurs in this column before too long, but here are three normalstrength, thoroughly ginny gins, with well-checked extra flavours, tested and approved. Each can be enjoyed in a supercharged G&T or as a cocktail ingredient.
WARNER’S RASPBERRY GIN
Northamptonshire (40%, Tesco, Waitrose, M&S, and warnersdistillery com, £36 for 70cl)
Warner’s is a wizard at flavoured gins and this brand-new release is a bright, rubyhued spirit with a beguiling natural raspberry aroma and not-too-sweet juicy fruit flavour. The finish is lifted, tangy and fresh.
TREVETHAN HONEY OAK CORNISH GIN
Cornwall (43%, Master of Malt, £39.95 for 70cl)
A cleverly crafted and delicious gin; oak pieces from the heart of the tree are soaked in Cornish honey then left in Trevethan’s gin for six to eight weeks to leave a pale gold colour and subtle sweet, vanilla nuances. Juniper shines through.
HESTON FROM WAITROSE CITRUS SHERBET LAZY GIN
Herefordshire (40%, £24.99 for 70cl)
The idea is that there’s no need to bother with a citrus garnish when pouring this, an appealing spirit made for Waitrose by Chase Distillery, tasting clearly of juniper and not oversweet. A clean, zesty streak runs through it.