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.
The product was first test marketed in Spain, and has since been launched in limited quantities internationally including here in Canada. It is bottled at 47 % alcohol by volume ensuring a more concentrated flavour than more traditional spirits which are bottled at 40 % alcohol by volume.
When I reviewed London No. 1 Blue Gin, I noted the spirit had strong floral flavours rippling though flavour profile and a building spiciness, which (the spiciness in particular) seemed ideally suited for cocktails. And although the strong floral characteristic of London No. 1 may seem similar to what I described yesterday when I wrote about another blue gin, Magellan Iris Flavoured Gin, I found that the floral characteristic withing London No. 1 Gin was softer and less perfume-like such that the the spirit was (in my opinion) much nicer in all manner of cocktails including the Gin and Tonic. This suitability of London No. 1 Blue Gin for mixology is positively reflected in my G & T Score for the Rum Howler Gin and Tonic Challenge.
This G&T Score for the London No. 1 Blue Gin, (based on my standard G & T cocktail) is 84/100.
Just so you do not have to keep track of these scores yourself, I have constructed a separate page to keep a running tally of all scores as they are published, and you may refer to that page here:
Rum Howler 2014 Gin and Tonic Challenge
As well you may read my published review of London No. 1 Blue Gin here:
Review: London No. 1 Blue Gin
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Note: I was provided a bottle for this challenge by Woodman Wines and Spirits Inc. who are the distributors of London No. 1 Gin in Ontario.
Magellan Iris Flavoured Gin
Beefeater London Dry Gin
There is a growing movement in the past ten years by American distillers (particularly small micro distillers) to produce a new North American style of gin (American Dry Gin) which is less dependent upon juniper than traditional London Dry Gin. The new American Dry Gin is an attempt to feature a broader and more balanced flavour profile, and the chances are that some of you have already encountered and enjoyed this new style of gin. Although this new type of gin is still in its evolutionary phase, it promises to bring more variety into the gin category, and perhaps offers a new take on the classic Gin and Tonic.
Tanqueray Gin
The Rum Howler Blog 