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Posts Tagged ‘Gin Review’

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Review: Gordon’s London Dry Gin

Posted by Arctic Wolf on May 19, 2011

Alexander Gordon founded the Gin Distillery in London in 1769, and although the company is now part of the Diageo conglomerate, they have apparently remained true to their original Gin recipe which includes handpicked juniper berries and other secret botanicals. (According the company website, only 12 persons in the world know the secret recipe.)

I picked up a 375 ml bottle of Gordon’s London Dry Gin a few months ago, and I decided that it was finally time to publish a review here on my website. Here is an excerpt from my review:

“…As I nosed the glass a nice piny juniper aroma climbed out of the glass into the breezes. This scent was quickly surrounded by sweeter lemon and lime citrus aromas. As well a light, almost birch-like aroma was hinted at, and the overall effect is quite nice…”

You may read the full review here:

Review: Gordon’s London Dry Gin

As well I have included a nice “Fizz” style recipe which tastes great with the Gordon’s Gin called The Lime Fizz.  Please enjoy my review of Gordon’s Gin and the Cocktail recipe which accompanies it.

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Review: Empire London Dry Gin

Posted by Arctic Wolf on August 1, 2010

Photo courtesy Highwood Distillery

Highwood Distillers is a Canadian distiller situated in the town of Highwood, Alberta, which lies just about 40 minutes due south of Calgary, at the foot of the Rocky Mountains.  Recently, I visited the distillery and watched first hand as they turned the local wheat into whisky, vodka. and gin.  I sampled the whisky, (See my reviews of Centennial Whisky & White Owl Whisky) and was delighted by the quality I encountered.  So when I started to review gin on my website, I decided to sample Highwood’s  Empire Gin to see how a locally produced gin would rate.

Although Empire Gin is a London Dry Gin, the moniker “London Dry Gin” refers to the double distillation method of production which defines London Dry Gin, but is not a reference to the country of origin.  Rather than being produced in England, Empire London Dry Gin is produced and bottled at the foot of the Rocky Mountains, in the Highwood Distillery. It is a Canadian Gin, and I was very curious as to how it compared with the more well-known brands like Tangueray No. 10 and Bombay Sapphire.

Here is an excerpt from my review:

“…The initial entry into the mouth is a little spicy as the tangy citrus seems to be in the forefront of the flavour.  The piny juniper seems to be more evident on the palate than it was on the nose, but it does not overwhelm the citrus, rather it seems to sit just underneath acting as an anchor to support the gin flavour through the palate…”

You May Read the full review here:

Empire London Dry Gin

Enjoy the Review!

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Review: Bombay Sapphire Gin

Posted by Arctic Wolf on July 8, 2010

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

Bombay Sapphire Gin is considered a London Dry Gin.  This refers to the process of distillation and not the current origin of the gin.  London Dry Gin is made through a double distillation of a neutral grain spirit with botanicals added during the second distillation.  The ten botanicals listed on the Bombay Sapphire website are: 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, cassio 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.

Here is an excerpt from my review:

“…I am a naive son of a gun.  I actually expected a light blue coloured gin to flow out of the bottle the first time I poured it.  Alas, the bottle is blue, not the gin.  It is a clear colourless liquid which imparts just a very light sheen of oil on the side of my glass.  The aroma from the glass is   a clean aroma with a piny (juniper) citrus note…”

You may read the full review here:

Gin Review: Bombay Sapphire London Dry Gin

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Tangueray No. 10 (A gin review)

Posted by Arctic Wolf on April 8, 2010

Oh my!  The Rum Howler Blog has branched out again.  This is my first attempt at a gin review.   My plan is to review at least three different gins by summertime subjecting them to the rigors of my peculiar review methodology.

I want to caution my readers that Gin is not a primary alcoholic beverage of which I indulge.  This means that my reviews of gin (and tequila for that matter) may more closely resemble fantasy than reality.  However, I would rather fail in trying to write a worthy review than to be satisfied with where I am at and make no attempt to grow and branch out.  (By the way I do not plan to fail!)

My method of reviewing any spirit is to discuss and score my enjoyment of the spirit. I am confident than an honest discussion of this enjoyment will lead to a worthwhile review.

So it is that we come to the first bottle of Gin which I will review,  Tangueray No. 10.  This is a premium quadruple distilled gin which sits at the top of the benchmark as far as Tangueray gin is concerned.  Here is an excerpt from my review:

“Tangueray No. 10  gin is soft and remarkably approachable.  Juniper berries lead out in front with hints of pine and spruce behind. My mouth tingles wherever the gin stops to rest which is probably caused by the higher than normal alcohol proof (94.6).  I can taste a light orange sweetness akin to Triple Sec or Cointreau in the background.  Floral notes drift  in and out of the currents of my palate, as do other citrus flavours….

You may read the full review here….

Gin Review: Tangueray No. 10

Of course I have added a few “forrest approved” cocktails including my sumptuous Key Lime Gimlet!

Enjoy the review!

Posted in Cocktails & Recipes, Gin, Gin Review | Tagged: , , , | 2 Comments »

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