Must Try Gins From Around the World

Gin fans Matt Jones, Stuart "Stu" Gregor, and Cameron "Cam" MacKenzie founded Four Pillars in 2013 as their way to contribute to Australia's craft spirits industry. They named their distillery after their four pillars approach to gin production - "stills, water, botanicals, and love." This Rare Dry Gin, the distillery's first gin release, celebrates this approach. Beginning with sourced Australian grain spirit, this gin is made with triple-distilled Yarra Valley water and six botanicals: European juniper berries, Australian lemon myrtle, Tasmanian pepperberry leaf, cinnamon, star anise, and organic oranges. After a final distillation in "Wilma," the distillery's German-made copper pot still, the gin is bottled at 41.8% ABV.

Gin de Mahón is a style of gin limited to the Spanish island of Menorca. Xoriguer, pronounced "sho-ri-gar" means "windmill" which the founder named for his family's windmill. Production of the gin includes a direct-fire copper pot still and juniper which "age" for 2 years near the harbour. The base of the gin is made from wine using parellada and xarel-lo grapes from the Penedès region known for its cava. Other production details and ingredients remain a closely guarded family secret. Xoriguer Gin de Mahón matures in American oak barrels before bottling. (41% ABV in the States, 38% elsewhere).

Nikka Coffey Gin uses a base of corn and malt distillate which were distilled in a Coffey Still as the name suggests. Japanese citrus such as yuzu, kabosu, amanatsu, and shikuwasa, along with sanshō pepper, and apples pair with traditional botanicals of juniper, angelica, coriander, and lemon peel in the production of this gin. Available in Japan beginning in late June 2017 with a wider release expected later that year.

The first gin released by Suntory, the name "Roku" is Japanese for "Six" which refers to the six Japanese botanicals used. Sakura flower (cherry blossoms), sakura leaf (cherry leaf), sencha tea (green tea), Gyokuro tea (refined green tea), sanshō pepper, and yuzu are utilized along with eight other traditional gin botanicals. The gin is distilled using a selection of different pot stills. The label is printed with Japanese washi paper. Roku Gin was released in Japan in July 2017, and is available in the UK, Germany, and Australia. As of October 2018, Roku is available in the US.

Bobby's Schiedam Dry Gin is an interpretation of creator Sebastiaan's grandfather, Bobby's homemade gin. Born in Indonesia, Bobby immigrated to the Netherlands in the 1950's, but longed for a spirit with the taste of home. So, he began infusing Dutch jenever with Indonesian herbs, thus creating his own gin. In 2012, Sebastiaan traveled to Holland to meet master distiller of Herman Jansen. Together, they created today's version of Bobby's recipe using Indonesian botanicals such as lemongrass, cloves, coriander, cubeb pepper and cinnamon.

The Botanist is a gin comprised of 9 standard botanicals and an additional 22 that were hand-foraged from Islay itself--botanicals like apple mint, heather, red clover, and meadowsweet among many others. The gin is distilled over 17 hours in a Lomond Still (a hybrid column + pot still). It is bottled at 46% ABV.

An abandoned cheese factory in Isokyrö, Finland has been home to the rye-obsessed Kyrö Distillery Company since 2014. While they waited for their rye whiskey to mature, they keep the stills busy producing new make spirit and rye-based gin like this one. Kyrö Gin (formerly known as Napue Gin) is made from rye grain and distilled with freshly-picked and locally sourced seabuckthorn, wild cranberries, birch leaves, and meadowsweet. The remaining 12 botanicals are undisclosed. It is bottled at 46.3% ABV.

Hernö Distillery is located in Dala, Sweden near the eastern coast. It is made in a one-shot method and only adds water which they source from their own well to bring the gin down to 40.5% ABV. They use 8 botanicals, all of which are certified organic and include fresh lemon peel which they peel by hand, lingonberries, meadowsweet, and black pepper. Note: This is not currently available in the U.S., but can be found in many European countries.

Produced in the Spanish Mediterranean, this gin begins with a barley neutral spirit. The botanicals, which include Arbequina olives, thyme, basil, and rosemary, are steeped in the spirit and distilled individually. It is then blended together where water and more neutral spirit is added. It is bottled at 42.7% ABV.

Released in 2000, Tanqueray No. TEN gin is named after the small copper pot-still ("Tiny Ten") that is used to produce the spirit. This Scottish gin uses a recipe which differs from the standard Tanqueray bottling. In addition to juniper, botanicals include coriander, chamomile flowers, white grapefruit, lime, and orange. Fun fact: The brand uses whole citrus fruits in its recipe.

Released in 2013, this gin bottling is called "VJOP" which stands for "Very Junipery Over Proof." During production, a large amount of juniper is added (3x more than their standard London Dry) and the gin undergoes a "triple juniper" process. First, additional juniper is added to the botanical recipe, which macerates with the base spirit for three days. Then more juniper is added following maceration. Finally, during distillation, more juniper is vapor infused with the spirit. The gin is then bottled at 57.7% ABV.

Plymouth Navy Strength Gin celebrates the historic nautical legacy in Plymouth that featured organizations and people including the Royal Navy and explorer Sir Francis Drake. It's made with seven botanicals: juniper berries, coriander seed, orange and lemon peel, green cardamom, angelica root, and orris root. It is bottled at 57% ABV.

The Nolet family operates the oldest running distillery in Holland, having produced spirits since 1691. While more known today for producing the Ketel One brand, the distillery recently began producing their own gin style, created by Carolus Nolet Sr and his sons, Carl Jr. and Bob. Nolet's Silver Gin begins with a mash made from European wheat. While the exact botanical recipe is a company secret, it does contain juniper, peach, turkish rose and raspberry. These botanicals are individually macerated and distilled with the base spirit. The final gin is bottled at 47.6% ABV.

Botanivore is aptly named as this gin most certainly is a "botanical eater", 19 different ones to be exact. Sixteen of them are steeped overnight in a neutral spirit to soak and steep. The remaining three--juniper berries, bay laurel, and fresh cilantro--are placed in a basket within the still to have the vapor pass through them. After pot-distillation, this gin is brought down to 45% ABV. It is sold in a 750ml size and in a 200ml sized bottle, the latter of which is sold in a trio pack with their other two gins.

Hailing from Germany’s Black Forest, Monkey 47 is an exotic gin made with a molasses base. The 47 refers to the number of botanicals used which includes such unlikely fruit ingredients like lingonberries, blackberries, and honey pomelo. These are combined with a host of recognizable gin botanicals such as chamomile, sage, angelica, coriander, and a whole array of others. Another anomaly at Monkey 47 is that the distillate is aged in earthenware containers for three months before being brought to 47% ABV with the forest’s celebrated water.