Sonic8222
Reviewed
December 21, 2024 (edited February 7, 2025)
Acquiring this gin (and a few other products at the same time) from this distillery was one of the most fun, yet simple experiences I've ever had. While walking around the King of Prussia mall during a work trip, I was shocked to see a little pop-up store for this distillery as one of the shop fronts. I spent a few hours in that little space speaking with the distillery representative, and was treated to sampling through the entire Philadelphia Distilling line, including the sourced Few whiskey products. I saved this gin for last, as I was very impressed when told that this is aged in first-use charred barrels, as opposed to the much more common use of bourbon barrels. In addition, the representative told me this was aged for up to/over 2 years, and although the Distiller listing contradicts that by saying only a few months, it also displays an old bottle and label style, so this longer aging may be a recent change to the product. Regardless, I was very impressed with this spirit on-site at the store, and I hope it delivers this again in a tasting environment.
The color is very impressive for a barrel aged gin, and this is no doubt due to the first-use barrels; although still light and watery, the gold/sherry hue is quite similar to common, cheap 80 proof American whiskeys on the market. The nose is not necessarily powerful, but jumps out of the glass, with notes of juniper, coriander, crushed pine, and a flat floralness combining with a vanilla and caramel, but with the sweetness being far weaker than the overall savoriness. The concentration is just right, with some ethanol wafting up to indicate this is no ordinary 80 proof, while still remaining approachable and simple.
The flavor begins with fresh, oily citrus peels and plain juniper, as well as some of the vanilla from the barrel. As it coats the mouth, things become very dry very quickly, with the barrel hitting the background in place of that dry yet citrus forward juniper bomb. The finish is slightly hot but quite dry, with notes of a toasted barrel as opposed to a level 3 charred one.
Without context, this is a fuller bodied, more rounded version of the simple American base Bluecoat gin, but being told that it's first-use barrel aged is almost disappointing, because those oak flavors aren't nearly as powerful as they could, and should, be. I'd wager to say maybe the ~3 month time frame is likely more correct as far as the amount of aging time, because it would be far more disappointing if this is all the barrel flavor we got from multiple years spent in the cask. Compared to the plain base gin, this is a no brainer winner, and really shows off the transformation from the barrel, but if you're specifically looking for a gin that's taken on the sweetness from oak barrels in lieu of the brighter, drier botanical mix, you'll want to steer clear of this one.