WINE & SPIRITS OFFICIAL SPONSORS OF THE WINE & SPIRITS SECTION
Gin mixologist at the City of London Distillery There’s a gin for everyone, says
Nicholas Cook, of The Gin Guild. “The skill in creating a gin is getting the best grain spirit and sourcing the best quality, natural botanicals to ensure consistent taste and flavour in batch after batch”. Cook, a lawyer in his previous working
life, points to brands such as Bombay Sapphire, Hendricks, Martin Miller and Tanqueray for spearheading the revival by making “lighter tasting gins, with a softer juniper hit. People’s tastes have become refined, and this is matched by the huge range of gin available.” So what is gin, and what is driving
people to create specialist distillations at this time? There’s no obvious legal clarification of what constitutes gin, but in essence it’s a clear sprit distilled from an agriculture product such as grain or even grapes and flavoured with botanicals; juniper berry being a must have. The old naval port in Plymouth, Devon, home to the eponymous gin, is distilled in the UK’s oldest working distillery and records
“The skill in
creating a gin is getting the best grain spirit and
sourcing the best quality, natural botanicals to
ensure consistent taste and flavour in batch after batch”
Nicholas Cook – Te Gin Guild
that: “If there are no juniper berries it’s not gin. Their essential oils provide the aroma of pine and a hint of bitterness on the palate”. Successful artisan and craft makers are now operating from the front room in a north London house (Sacred), across the Scottish countryside, many in whisky distilleries (Caorunn and Hendricks, for example) and under railway arches in east London (Bermondsey Gin). Small batch producers are thriving across the UK, offering consumers a bar room full of new tastes to experience. Indeed, gin bars are popping up across the country, with Graphic Bar in central London offering Gin Socials, monthly gatherings of enthusiasts keen to learn more with reps from gin makers and pairing ideas for gin, cocktails and food. While it is tricky to pinpoint an exact moment when this latest gin craze took hold, some gin aficionados point
to
Hendricks adding cucumber and rose to the their library of botanicals as a R
72 SAVILE ROW STYLE MAGAZINE
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