Gin

[ukdazs]

Do we really not have a gin thread? Maybe we have and I can't see it through my gin-soaked vision.

 

So, what's everyone's favourite Gin at the moment? Traditionally, I tended to drink Bombay Sapphire but with the explosion of different types over the last few years I've been trying to broaden my horizons somewhat. 

 

At the moment I've got a bottle of Larios on the go. It was on offer in the supermarket so thought I'd try it. I've only had one glass so far so I'll reserve judgement on it for now.

 

My current favourite though is G'vine. Made with grapes rather than juniper (although it does have some juniper in it.) Really smooth with an almost floral undertone. 

 

What are you all drinking?

[Graham]

My cheapo of choice for frequent drinking and for guests I don’t want to waste the good shit on is the Aldi Oliver Cromwell London Dry £14.99/ litre and very drinkable with a decent tonic.

 

as a next step up I’m really fond of  Brockmans (crush a few blueberries in a shot glass, top it up neat, knock it back...luverly)

 

Recently fell in love with Vidda Torr Nordic gin.

 

Don’t know how to do pictures but do know I can’t go gin shopping without Ginventory (iOS app that aggregates user reviews of gin, suggest best serves etc) unless I go to my favourite off-licence 23 Whiskey and Wine, Granby st Leicester who will pretty much open anything for you to try

 

[Glasgowchivas]

[ukdazs]

I saw a bottle of that in Asda yesterday. Any good? 

[Uncle Mike]

I quite like this one

 

[Lovelyman]

I really liked beefeater 24.

 

My Dad loves Gin Mare

[Glasgowchivas]

17 hours ago, EUkdazs said:

I saw a bottle of that in Asda yesterday. Any good? 

 

Yes, it’s good; dunno if it’s worth the price though.

[Commander Jameson]

My girlfriend is really into her gins now, especially the flavoured ones (I've no idea if this is heresy in the gin world of not). She likes this sort of stuff.

 

 

Tanqueray gin is another favourite, particularly the lime flavour. She did try Tanqueray 10 recently and could tell the difference immediately.

 

Any recommendations for reasonably-priced gins (or bargains)?

[Dude Ranch]

Adams Copper House is very nice. Tried Bathtub recently and that was particularly good. Lidl Hortus gin is pretty standard but great value and really drinkable. 

[McCoy]

 

 

I enjoy most gins but the ones above stand out, in addition to the Berry Bros No 3 already mentioned on this page.  Some of the Italian gins are really nice to. For my everyday gin, Beefeater and Tanqueray are my standard choices. Not a massive fan of Gordons or any Gin below 40% (a lot of the cheaper gins creep down to 37%, I like a bit more of a kick than that). 

 

I do Craft Gin Club.  It is pricey at £40 a month, but you can choose a quarterly option which is what I get.  It is just a nice surprise every few months to get some usually random gin which tastes pretty good. If people want to try then code GINPALS15 will get £15 off your first box. 

 

[Uncle Mike]

My wife bought me a bottle of Brecon gin for my birthday, which I haven't tried yet but smells good:

 

 

Recently I was also enjoying this one from Dorset:

[Gigga]

I think I've got about 20 bottles of gin at the moment.  Recently I've been drinking Gin Mare with Mediterranean tonic, a sprig of basil and a couple of cherry tomatoes as garnish which is absolutely delicious.

For most cocktails, negroni for example, I use Tanqueray, it's robust and has a good juniper base. You could use beafeater for this purpose but personally I find it a bit harsh. Martin Millers is my go to for Martinis, although I usually serve mine with a cocktail onion rather than a lemon twist. It's a very citrus forward gin, very smooth and usually quite reasonably priced.

 

Bargain wise, Aldi now have a "blackforest gin" which is basically monkey 47 at a much lower price point, it's a bit different to the usual but worth giving a go.

 

[cowfields]

East London Liquor Company's Batch 2 is my favourite of recent times I think. Good enough I'll sometimes sip it on its own because I think it's flavour is good enough for that.

 

Their "normal" gin is actually really good for the price (about £20 I think?) 

 

Batch 2:

https://www.thewhiskyexchange.com/p/26556/east-london-liquor-premium-gin-batch-2

 

Normal London Dry:

https://www.thewhiskyexchange.com/p/26554/east-london-liquor-dry-gin

 

And it's my go to 'house party' gin, because of the value for money I think. I appreciate the price because I believe they made a sort of promise to not overprice their gin, and always have an 'affordable' gin on their line up. Their bar is great, and they make good cocktails.

 

I recently got some of this on an impulse - it's REALLY grapefruity. Easy drinking

https://www.amazon.co.uk/Sly-Gin-London-Pink-Grapefruit/dp/B075KQ5MXV

 

The point of gin is not to have a favourite anyway, it's to have many favourites, many things to add to it (eg rosemary, ginger, lime, fruit, whatever), and many tonics.

 

I admit we've become really lazy, and we just buy all the fever tree cans. But if I could be bothered to keep a stock of soda water or have a soda stream, I'd get into tonic syrups. I generally do at Christmas because my parents have a soda stream...

[ukdazs]

20 hours ago, Gaz said:

I think I've got about 20 bottles of gin at the moment.  Recently I've been drinking Gin Mare with Mediterranean tonic, a sprig of basil and a couple of cherry tomatoes as garnish which is absolutely delicious.

For most cocktails, negroni for example, I use Tanqueray, it's robust and has a good juniper base. You could use beafeater for this purpose but personally I find it a bit harsh. Martin Millers is my go to for Martinis, although I usually serve mine with a cocktail onion rather than a lemon twist. It's a very citrus forward gin, very smooth and usually quite reasonably priced.

 

Bargain wise, Aldi now have a "blackforest gin" which is basically monkey 47 at a much lower price point, it's a bit different to the usual but worth giving a go.

 

I'm pretty sure I've had Gin Mare somewhere before and enjoyed it. Good spot on the Aldi blackforest gin. That'll definitely be going in the trolley next time I'm in. I also want to get a bottle of Malfy lemon, which I tried in a little wine/spirits shop a couple of months ago.

 

Gaz, not sure where you're based these days but that little wine/spirits shop is opposite the Wolseley Arms in that weird little cut in with an Indian restaurant and some antique shops. Worth a visit if you're in the area.

[The Fox]

Enjoying some of this at the moment.

 

 

That Conker gin that was posted up the page is lovely too.

[Uncle Mike]

And, of course, the classic hometown gin:

 

[Gigga]

On 30/10/2018 at 12:10, EUkdazs said:

I'm pretty sure I've had Gin Mare somewhere before and enjoyed it. Good spot on the Aldi blackforest gin. That'll definitely be going in the trolley next time I'm in. I also want to get a bottle of Malfy lemon, which I tried in a little wine/spirits shop a couple of months ago.

 

Gaz, not sure where you're based these days but that little wine/spirits shop is opposite the Wolseley Arms in that weird little cut in with an Indian restaurant and some antique shops. Worth a visit if you're in the area.

 

I know where you mean but I haven't been back for years. 

I had a silent pool the other day, I quite enjoyed it.

Here are a few of my other favourites while I'm here.

Deaths Door
It's quite savoury, very smooth.

 

Junipero

I have a few bottles in my cupboard that rarely get touched because I can't bear to finish them, this is one of them. It has an incredible juniper flavour and you only need the lightest splash of tonic to get the best out of it.

 

St George Terroir

This stuff is not your normal gin at all, the flavour profile is completely different to anything else I've ever tasted. It is distilled with douglas fir, sage and bay so it's very savoury and while it pairs well with a crisp, light tonic my favourite use for this is actually this cocktail.

BUONGIORNO

1 oz St. George Terroir Gin, 1 oz Aperol, 1 oz lemon juice, 1 oz bergamot simple syrup, 1 oz egg white

 

[Lovelyman]

Ooh. Definitely going to try that St George. 

[Gigga]

On 03/11/2018 at 16:09, Mrs Horribleman said:

Ooh. Definitely going to try that St George. 

 

If you can get a smaller bottle, or try it at a bar before committing I would.  It's very, very, different.

[Lovelyman]

15 minutes ago, Gaz said:

 

If you can get a smaller bottle, or try it at a bar before committing I would.  It's very, very, different.

Bought a 70cl one! You say drink with a small amount of tonic. What sort of ratio do you recommend?

[Gigga]

It's the junipero that just needs a small amount of tonic, and really it depends on the tonic. 

 

You can probably go for a bit more with the st George because it's so distinctive, but I'd suggest getting something like 1724 which is gentle and not too sweet. 

[sir podger]

I had the pleasure of going to the Ginstitute in Portobelllo Road for an afternoon. My Girlfriend had bought two experience vouchers for my birthday and we finally got to use  them

 

It was extremely interesting and funny, where you learned the history of this delicious drink while also consuming a few, then go and learn about all the botanicals that go into gin and eventually make your own unique flavour of gin. You leave the place with a bottle of their own gin and the one you made which they can recreate for you at any time.

 

A fantastic way to spend 3.5 hours, but i would recommend a good breakfast before going.

[Lovelyman]

St George gin is gorgeous. I'm surprised how well it works. Thanks for the recommendation, @Gaz

 

I'll get my dad a bottle for Christmas. 

[strawdonkey]

I have some of the Roku gin, it's noticeably different to other ones I've had - interested to hear what mixer people drink with this as it feels like a waste using supermarket light tonic!

[stefcha]

1 hour ago, strawdonkey said:

I have some of the Roku gin, it's noticeably different to other ones I've had - interested to hear what mixer people drink with this as it feels like a waste using supermarket light tonic!

 

Perfect timing, I never thought I'd be this snobbish about drink but a shit mixer can really fucking ruin a good gin as I've just discovered. My wife got some low calorie Tesco own brand stuff for Xmas and I've given it an early go and I'm glad I did because it's getting poured away, I'm not even going to inflict that on whatever family is coming round. Tried the tonic on its own and I don't even know what the hell it's trying to be, but it's plain unpleasant and doesn't even taste anything like I'd expect tonic to taste at all. And this is from someone who will generally eat or drink anything without much complaint so it must be bad.

 

So what to get. Try what you like, basically. If you like it enjoy it and fuck what anyone else thinks - apart from the above, trust and believe in that or god help you, you heathen. Schweppes is a perfectly good tonic, or one of the various Fever Tree efforts if you want something a bit lighter / more varied and is equally easy to buy. Try a few options, and don't bother with the litre bottles as it's such a false economy unless there's loads of you on the same stuff, there's enough for about 20 drinks in one of those and they're flat as a fart in the shortest time. 

[Gigga]

1724 is a really good tonic that compliments gin well. 

 

There are a lot of really good tonics on the market now though if you move  beyond the supermarket. 

 

 

[Gotters]

I've found the rise of the designer tonic a bit of an exercise in style over substance, and many of them are too 'showy' and don't let the gin be the star, which for me is the point - I stick exclusively with schweppes small tins which are perfect for a double measure - all that fever tree stuff seems to jump and down in the glass demanding attention, the only one of theirs I like is the mediterranean, but even then it adds too much to the drink.

 

my son got me a bottle of silverback gin for xmas yesterday, its a juniper heavy english dry gin, very nice with a slice of lemon and schweppes - but they recommend serving it with that cardamom tonic water which he got a bottle of to try - its vile, tastes like curry water to me and deserves no place in my G&T

 

[Gigga]

I can't agree with that at all, Schweppes is disgusting and ruins everything it touches. 

 

I'm not a huge fever tree fan, but there are a lot of tonics out there that use sugar, or agave for sweetness rather than sweeteners and are lightly sweet, lightly carbonated and properly buttered. 

[nakamura]

I'm drinking pink gin at the moment.  I've never tried gin but I'm watching Les Miserables and Russell Crowe has driven me to it. 

It's quite nice. 

[Lovelyman]

22 hours ago, Gaz said:

I can't agree with that at all, Schweppes is disgusting and ruins everything it touches. 

 

I'm not a huge fever tree fan, but there are a lot of tonics out there that use sugar, or agave for sweetness rather than sweeteners and are lightly sweet, lightly carbonated and properly buttered. 

Yeah I tried a Schweppes as that was all The local shop had and it ruined the drink. Horrible bitter thing.