| The Long-Awaited Oto Guide to Gin |
[Aug. 2nd, 2004|09:01 pm] |
10. MAGELLAN (France) -- a very piney and antiseptic tasting gin, pale blue in color. The distinctive color is from infusion of iris root. Striking color and taste contrast if you use a blackberry instead of the conventional martini olive.
9. DARESBURY'S Q Quintessential Warrington Dry Gin (UK) -- sort of reminds you of drinking cologne, but in a good way. Like, you're drinking Issey Miyagi instead of Hai Karate. Must go old school for martinis with this one: baby onions or olive/pimiento are the only things that stand up to it.
8. CITADELLE (France) -- I hate acknowledging any country that does not support us in the war against islamofascists, but this is one tasty gin. Smooth and drinkable, it has a conventional gin taste, like an average of every gin you've ever tasted. This implies, to me, heavy reliance on juniper and not going overboard with other botanicals. When mixing a martini, it displays a wide range of flavors depending on how "dry" you make the martini; the martini is extremely sensitive to how much you titrate it with vermouth. However, novices can still enjoy it.
7. HENDRICK (Netherlands) -- This unorthodox gin, renowned for its cucumber/rose petal hints, is not that flexible. If you don't use a slice of cucumber as recommended by the distiller, your options are somewhat limited. The blackberry trick made me almost hurl the first time I tried it. Citrus just doesn't really do it either. Olives or onions are somehow just not right with it. This one is not for novices but tastes fine with the cucumber.
6. BOMBAY SAPPHIRE (UK) -- This gin is the workhorse of every bar, and has the taste most people associate with a higher-end gin. It is satisfactory, seemingly covering all the botanicals associated with gin without favoring any one of them. A solid fall-back when there's no alternative, but rarely am I in the mood for this stuff anymore when there are so many less conventional gins out there. A dirty martini really works with this stuff, as does using red vermouth rather than traditional white vermouth. In fact, a red vermouth Bombay Sapphire martini almost got me laid by this hot, hot OB-GYN resident during Gasparilla. She unfortunately drank too many of these.
5. TANQUERAY MALACCA (UK) -- Good luck finding this one, if it is made at all anymore. This recipe dated from 1848 or so, and for some reason I haven't seen it anywhere for a couple of years but I remember it as a strangely spicy gin that reminded me of lemon pepper butter, which are the same flavors that I enjoy in good pussy. Throw in a little cinnamon, with a note of juniper to remind you you're drinking gin. Great with either citrus or olives.
4. GREENWICH MERIDIAN (UK) -- Took me awhile to understand this gin. Initially I didn't like it, believing it compared unfavorably to turpentine or wood alcohol. The first martini I made with it was not, admittedly, the first martini of the night, and I was like "I could swear I just made a GIN martini but I think I'm drinking a VODKA martini?" Later into the bottle (not on the same night, asshole) I began to appreciate a weird note vaguely reminiscent of Swedish Malort, to which the infamous Erik Beck first introduced me. An interesting gin, full of surprises I am still trying to reckon with.
3. TANQUERAY X (UK) -- I'm overjoyed that this gin is so popular because, unlike Malacca, I never have to worry about it becoming unavailable. A citrussy, spicy gin that goes admirably well with a lime twist and mellows nicely and sensitively with vermouth titration. One of my standbys, if I am in a relatively uncivilized bar. I've never had a hangover with this stuff, despite abusing about six TX martinis, once. Actually, the lack of hangover with higher-end gin is one of the things I love about gin.
2. DAMARK (Netherlands) -- I used to make my friends Absinthe martinis, using Czech Absinthe instead of vermouth. This gin has enough of a licorice note to it and you can conserve your precious absinthe. Rarely do I add a garnish to a martini made with Damark as the garnish becomes completely, completely irrelevant. There is a coffee-ish subtle aftertaste that has been noticed by other alert palates, besides mine. I have no idea how they accomplish this. The bottle has a Grolsch-style ceramic bottle-stop mechanism on top of it, and the rubber o-ring gets a little brittle in your freezer, but doesn't affect the taste.
1. MARTIN MILLER'S REFORMED LONDON DRY GIN (UK) -- Perhaps there is no accounting for taste, but this is my favorite gin. Purists may scoff because this gin has that distinctive juniper lemonade finish. Has a watermelon Jolly Rancher flavor with a floral overtone. Responds well to precise vermouth titration, and it makes a huge difference whether you use a twist of lemon, a twist of lime, or a blackberry garnish. Use of olives is questionable in this gin, and a dirty Miller's martini is pretty much an abomination. Anytime I find this stuff I buy multiple bottles, as I live in the tropics and gin is necessary medicine to ward off malaria.... |
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