What is a good Gin?

Mark1966

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Well we have lots of whisky and run threads - but our friend @Rami is after recommendations on gin, having tried Sapphire and Heindricks.

Over to you people ...
 
I'd like a g&t please.

Actually what's a good g&t brand to get. I tried sapphire and hendricks. I would get another once I finish one of my scotch bottles.
I'm a big fan of Sipsmith, but very expensive in this country. It depends on whether you like juniper forward London type gin or more floral.
Tanqueray 10 is a great gin at a reasonable price. Gin Mare, Jinzu, Caorunn, Beefeater 24 (not the usual rubbish), Monkey 47. 4 Pillars make a good Aussie gin.
But make sure you get a decent tonic too. Fevertree Indian Tonic for me.
 
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I'm a big fan of Sipsmith, but very expensive in this country. It depends on whether you like juniper forward London type gin or more floral.
Tanqueray 10 is a great gin at a reasonable price. Gin Mare, Jinzu, Caorunn, Beefeater 24 (not the usual rubbish), Monkey 47. 4 Pillars make a good Aussie gin.
But make sure you get a decent tonic too. Fevertree Indian Tonic for me.



Excellent suggestions.
 
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I'll second both Sapphire and Tanqueray #10 batch. I can tell you a few crappy ones though!
 
I looked a nicks website a few weeks ago and was amazed at the number of different gins he carries. If postage wasn't so much I'd have grabbed a few bottles.
 
Tanqueray is my goto. Used to be Bombay Sapphire from general commerical vein.
Gin is complex and depending on the herbs used is such a personal preference. So many new Australian artisans with good, great and so so out there.
 
I agree Beefeater is a good start, you need fresh everything, fresh lime, fresh ice, good Tonic water. The swill you get from a pub will not do a good gin justice. All the above are good, the only gin i dont like is Ophir, quite disgusting to me. Bombay is good. My new go to is Tanqueray No 10 with Cucumber and mint and fever tree tonic water, bootifull it is.
 
Hendricks if on special.
Tanqueray is my go-to.
And echo those above that recommend Fever Tree Indian Tonic Water. But beware their Mediterranean Tonic Water - it is very different, and for my tastes, doesn't go well with gin.
 
Tanqueray is a good place to start. From there I'd suggest Berry Bros No3 or Cadenhead Old Raj. The latter comes in 43% and 55% bottlings. Get the latter if you can - mix at about 1 to 4 with Fevertree (yellow label, not blue) for the best G & T.

If you want to try local, look out for 78 Degrees. Its more modern to my taste but really good (it got a gong of some sort at some show last year...). Archie Rose is another one.
 
A friend of our had her 50th the other night. We were invited to a Gin party. Her and her husband own a small hotel in Perth (accommodation and little bar). He's into whisky, but they've started making their own Gin, they'll be launching it locally soon.

She had 6 batches on tasting for feedback - every one was very different, and being neat, most were not that nice to taste. But I'm no Gin aficionado, and neither was anyone else. So I'd suggest that good gin is like any other alcoholic pursuit, you have to drink a lot to know what's good/what you like.

The party had a cocktail waitress and 7 drinks on it. Far too many blue and green drinks on it, so I had the James Bond Martini and thereafter G&Ts. They all tasted great, but packed a punch. A bit more classy than bottom shelf Gin, which is always very dry, from memory.
 
I thought the name might give the clue to @drubbings point about bottom of the shelf gin, but it appears I was wrong (yes I know, even I was surprised about that).
"London Dry is what most people think of when they think of gin. London Dry gins have to have all natural ingredients, and most importantly can't have any flavorings or colourings added (except for a minuscule amount of sugar) after the distillation process. London Dry is really a showcase for the botanicals.

Distilled gin is made essentially the same way as London Dry, with one big difference—flavoring can be added after distillation. In recent years, as the perception of what gin can be has expanded, more distilled gins have hit the market, and some of them have become quite popular.

Compound gin, or just plain 'gin,' can mostly be found—when it's found at all—on the bottom shelves at your local liquor store, and for good reason. There are no real laws governing how compound gin must be made, or what can or can't be added after distillation. Most compound gins have juniper flavoring infused after distillation, which makes it essentially a glorified flavored vodka. They're cheap, but you get what you pay for."
 
Any comments on the Darley's Gin sold at Aldi? I saw it the other day and assumed for the price it cant be good, but seems to be some good reviews on the internet?
 
@Jase if it's anything like their Whisky I would pass
 
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