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Posts Tagged ‘Gin’

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Review: No. 3 London Dry Gin

Posted by Arctic Wolf on July 9, 2014

Berry Bros. & Rudd is London’s oldest wine and spirits merchant with over 300 years of experience and tradition to draw on. Use this expertise and a team of spirits experts they created No. 3 London Dry Gin. The recipe is based upon three fruits and three spices, and to those I shall speak to in the review. However, I shall say as a bit of foreshadowing, that sometimes artistry can be found in simplicity.

I first sampled the No. 3 Gin at a store called Lacombe Park Spirits in St. Albert, Alberta. I have come to know the proprietors, Karim and his brother Jeff, quite well over the past couple of years, and when Karim discovered that I was about to venture into a series of Gin reviews he insisted that I try one of his favourites.

I was convinced after one sip that this was a gin which I wanted to review, and after contacting the website for No. 3 London Dry Gin, Ross Hendry from Berry Brothers & Rudd, arranged for me to receive a bottle sample with of course the help of the local distributor Charton-Hobbs.

Here is a link to the full review (click on the excerpt):

1878 Gin Cocktail

1878 Gin Cocktail

Review: No. 3 London Dry Gin

“…When that first sample was poured for me at Lacombe Spirits, the first thing I noticed was the assertiveness of the aroma around the glass. I commented to Karim (the proprietor of Lacombe Park Spirits) that this was exactly how I liked my gin to smell in the glass. The nose was full of juniper, but it was not sharp and unpleasant, rather it was full of aromatics which lifted the juniper scent out of the glass and then surrounded it with floral notes and a beguiling sweetness…”

Leo Engels, published his Bartender’s Guide, American and Other Drinks, in 1878. It is a fascinating glimpse into early mixology at a time when bar drinks and cocktails were just beginning to evolve and spread through North America and Europe. At that time, the word ‘cocktail’ was reserved for a specific type of bar drink, which resembles what we call the Old-Fashioned cocktail today.

Included in my updated review of No. 3 London Dry Gin is a reconstruction of Leo Engels’ original Gin Cocktail recipe, the 1878 Gin Cocktail.

Please enjoy my review and the recipes that follow!

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Review: Brokers Gin

Posted by Arctic Wolf on June 5, 2014

Broker’s Gin is a relatively new brand, created in 1998 by the Dawson Brother’s (Martin and Andy). Despite the rather recent creation of this brand, the recipe for Broker’s Gin is reported to be over 200 years old. Apparently, during the design phase for the brand, the Dawson brothers tasted and tested many newer recipes as well; however they found that sometimes the old ways really are the best ways, and after various trials they chose the 200-year-old recipe.

Broker’s Gin is made from traditional copper pot stills in a distillery located near Birmingham, England. The spirit is a wheat-based, quadruple-distilled, pure grain gin. Ten natural ingredients are used to flavour the spirit, and of course the primary botanical used is juniper. The ten botanicals are steeped in the quadruple-distilled base spirit within the still for 24 hours prior to the spirit being processed through a final, fifth distillation to produce Broker’s Gin. Like the recipe for the gin, the Birmingham distillery where it is created is over 200 years old.

Lime Martini with Broker's

Lime Martini with Broker’s

I was given my bottle of Broker’s Gin by Woodman Wines and Spirits to review on my website.

Here is an excerpt from my review:

Review: Broker’s (Premium London Dry Gin)

“… I poured out my first sample of Broker’s Gin into a glencairn glass and my nose was greeted with the classic mild piny juniper scent of a traditional English gin. Light notes of lemon and lime citrus lay in the breezes with just a hint of orange peel. The overall effect is light and refreshing. If you spend some time nosing the glass it is possible to detect a very light pungent spiciness which lies under the more assertive juniper and citrus… “

I have included two nice cocktail suggestions with this review, the Lady of the Empire, and the Lime Martini.

Please enjoy the review and the cocktails!

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Review: Hendrick’s Gin

Posted by Arctic Wolf on May 26, 2014

Yesterday, I had a few of my friends over for a bit of a spirits tasting. I chose three aged spirits for the group to analyze (more on those in a later posting), and afterwards I made some gin cocktails for everyone to enjoy. The first gin I poured was Hendrick’s, and the cocktail which I chose to showcase the gin was the classic Tin and Tonic. The Hendrick’s and Fever Tree Tonic I served went over so well that I decided to revisit the Hendrick’s Gin review which I had written about three years ago.

The people who make Hendrick’s Gin pride themselves on being just a little quirky, and perhaps a bit eccentric. Their offbeat website revels in the odd and the peculiar and tries to convince all who peruse the site that Hendrick’s Gin is special exactly because of the things which make it odd and peculiar.

The gin is produced in Scotland, in the village of Girvin, Ayrshire by William Grant & Sons (who are perhaps better known for their whisky distillations than their gin). It is made small batches (450 litre batch size) using two unusual stills, a copper Bennett Still which has been dated to 1860, and a Carter-Head still made in 1948. These stills each serve a different purpose, but together they create a unique gin made with 11 different botanicals, and infused with cucumber and rose petals one batch at a time.

You may read my full review as well as my take on a quirky Gin and Tonic by clicking the link below:

Review: Hendrick’s Gin

“… The nose begins with mild citrus tones which are accented by juniper.  I catch hints of lemon-lime and orange as well as a fleeting impression of black licorice and fennel. The impressions continue to be fleeting with hints of light familiar scents, perhaps a touch of lilac, and perhaps something more earthy like damp moss. This is very complex …”

Please enjoy the review and if you happen to have a bottle of Henricks’ Gin handy, do try the Hendrick’s and Fever Tree Tonic cocktail which concludes the review!

Posted in Gin, Gin Review | Tagged: , , , | 1 Comment »

Revisiting Beefeater Gin (and the 24 too)!

Posted by Arctic Wolf on May 15, 2014

Beefeater LDG_0029_beefeater24With Spring finally arriving, I am continuing on my Spring series of Gin reviews to welcome in the warmer weather. This week I take a second look at two Beefeater Gins. Beefeater London Dry Gin and Beefeater 24.

Beefeater is currently produced in Kennington, a district of South East London, in the United Kingdom. The company has roots stretching back to 1820, when the Chelsea Distillery was constructed on Cale Street and served as the first home for Beefeater Gin. The founder of the company, James Burrough, was not born until 1835, and it was not until about 1876 that the Beefeater brand was created from gin produced at the Chelsea Distillery. Over time the brand has changed locations twice, first in 1908 to Hutton Road, and then in 1958 to its present location in Kennington.

The Beefeater Gin website lists 9 botanicals which are used to flavour its flagship spirit and they are juniper from the hills of Italy, Siberia and Macedonia; Seville orange peel; bitter almonds; ground orris root; coriander seeds; angelica (seeds and root); licorice; and lemon peel.

Here is the link to the full Review for Beefeater London Dry Gin:

Review: Beefeater London Dry Gin

“… Soft piny notes of juniper arise beside predominant scents of orange and lemon citrus. Because I know what other botanicals are used in the gin’s construction, I am able to discern some notes of coriander and very faints wisps of licorice …”

Beefeater 24  is advertised as being handcrafted with 12 botanicals which include grapefruit, bitter almond, orris root, Seville orange peel, rare Japanese Sencha tea and Chinese green tea. This makes the Beefeater 24 Gin more complex in construction than the regular beefeater Gin which listed 9 ingredients. There are other differences as well, The new Beefeater 24 is bottled at a higher proof (45 % alcohol by volume) which to me seems most welcome, and all of the ingredients are apparently steeped in grain alcohol for 24 hours prior to a 7 hour distillation where the master distiller makes an artisan cut by hand from the heart of the distillation run.

Here is the Link to the full review for Beefeater 24:

Review: Beefeater 24 (London Dry Gin)

“… There is a ‘freshness’rising out of the glass and I liken it to the scent of an alpine forest on a warm spring day when the snow is melt just beginning. The aroma of evergreen boughs and juniper jumps out of the glass pushed ahead by a crisp citrus-like aroma…”

Please enjoy each review!

 

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London No. 1 Original Blue Gin

Posted by Arctic Wolf on May 9, 2014

London No. 1 Original Blue Gin is a product of Gonzalas Byass who are a Spanish wine/cellars company which also produces a variety of distilled spirits including brandy, anisette, botanical vodka and of course gin. Their gin is triple distilled (from English grain in London, England) on a traditional pot still in small batches by Master Distiller, Charles Maxwell. According to the London No. 1 website the gin is distilled with 12 key botanicals which include: Juniper from Croatia; Angelica root and Savory from France; Coriander from Morocco; Cassia bark from China, Liquorice from Turkey, Cinnamon from Ceylon, Almond from Greece; and Lemon peel, Orange peel, Lily root and Bergamot from Italy.

Big Blue Sexy

Big Blue Sexy

The product was first test marketed in Spain, and is now being launched in limited quantities internationally. It is bottled at 47 % alcohol by volume ensuring a more concentrated flavour than more traditional distilled spirits which are bottled at 40 % alcohol by volume.

I was given a bottle for review by Woodman Wines and Spirits Inc. who have informed me that this product is now available again in limited quantities in Ontario, Canada. (I have seen it on the shelves here in Alberta as well.)

You may read my review by Clicking on the following excerpt.

Review: London No. 1 Original Blue Gin

“… The aroma from the glass is intensely floral. It has a sharp quality which similar to freshly bloomed lilacs. The more familiar gin aromas of earthy juniper, spicy cardamom, lemon peel and orange citrus lie somewhat behind that floral intensity …”

I included a classic cocktail recipe, The Pegu Club Cocktail, with this review, as well as a recipe of my own, Big Blue Sexy.

Please enjoy the review and of course my included recipes, Cheers!

Posted in Gin, Gin Review | Tagged: , , , , , | 4 Comments »

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