October Gin Tasting

October’s tasting is taking us in a slightly different direction as we branch out and try some gin! Gin is typically made from any neutral grain spirit infused with botanicals, with Juniper being the most common botanical chosen. However a number of different gin variations exist, both within and outside of the Juniper expression. This month, we’ll be trying the following:

• Beefeater: A quintessential London dry gin made with big juniper character and strong citrus notes. Still made in London to the founder James Burrough’s original recipe of 9 botanicals featuring bold juniper, zesty Seville Orange and Lemon Peel.
• Sipsmith London Dry: A revitalization of an English classic. In 2009 Sipsmith became the first copper-pot still distillery to open in London for 189 years. Using traditional recipes, but also the traditional copper-pot stills, Sipsmith brings a fantastic new take on a classic spirit.
• Barr Hill Tomcat: Hailing from Vermont, Barr Hill brings a new ingredient to their gins: honey. Barr Hill’s Tomcat gin is even more ambitious since it is aged in new American Oak casks. With so many flavors, this gin can easily be drank in a cocktail or neat.
• Sipsmith Sloe Gin: A sweeter gin made with sloe berries. While called berries, sloe berries are small sour fruits closely related to plums. However, if picked after an Autumn frost, (or if frozen), the fruits lose their tartness. This gin is fantastic for any fruity cocktail or as a sweet aperitif.

The Gin is In is a great website for some cool resources:

• https://theginisin.com/articles/tldr-a-glossary-of-gin-terms/
• https://theginisin.com/styles/
• https://theginisin.com/gin-flavor-diagram/