Review: Bombay Sapphire London Dry Gin

Posted by Arctic Wolf on June 30, 2012

I have been on a bit of a gin kick lately, and recently re-acquainted myself with Bombay Sapphire London Dry Gin. The reunion went quite well, and I thought I would update my review here on the website. The result was some minor changes to the tasting notes and a very minor change in the score.

Bombay Sapphire Gin is distributed by Bacardi. It was launched in 1987, and draws its unusual name from a competition where several marketing agencies were asked to submit possible names and bottle designs for the new Gin. Bombay Sapphire, the chosen name, refers to the British Empire and India heritage for the spirit in India, as gin was an extremely popular spirit during the time of the British Raj. The Star of Bombay (featured on the label) is a famous Indian Sapphire now on display at the Smithsonian Institute.

Bombay Sapphire Gin is a London Dry Gin. This style of gin is produced through a double distillation of a neutral grain spirit with botanicals added during the second distillation. The botanicals in Bombay Sapphire Gin which are listed on the company website are as follows:

Spanish almonds and lemon peel, West African grains of paradise, Chinese licorice, juniper berries from Tuscany, orris root from Italy, angelica root from Saxony, coriander seed from Morocco, cassia bark from Indo China, and cubeb berries from Java.

It will be most interesting to see what this bevy of ingredients from around the world has imparted into the spirit.

“… The aroma from the glass is a clean aroma with a piny (juniper) citrus note. A well-defined floral character sits with the juniper, but it will take a better nose than I have to distinguish the effects of each of the ten botanicals used to produce the gin. What i smell is a hint of lilac and mint. I also seem to catch an aroma reminiscent of sweet grass, and a vague humus like scent in the glass which is not unappealing.… “

You may read my full review here