Empress 1908 Indigo Gin

Won the blind tasting. Great. Floral, bizarre earthy tannins and bright botanicals. Rich and lovely. Plus the purple color makes it fun. And yeah I pretty much mailed this review in and Im embarrassed i dont have more to offer you. Um....how about the fun tidbit that in Hopi Indian lore, the Hopi people were brought underground by Ant People and saved as a firestorm and cataclysmic event destroyed the earths surface and then brought back up years later and re-settled in the area in which they still reside. Does that make up for it?

I expected this to be more citrus forward (based on a few reviews), but for me the juniper is much more at the front than the citrus. Empress also doesn’t have much bitterness, which I enjoy. Altogether a really nice gin, and enjoying it more than expected.

Rating: 15/23 N: An initial gin sharpness with some tartness and definite juniper. Then some more mellow herbal scents come in, adding some richness and a bit of vegetal character. It's hard to describe at this point. It could even be faintly nutty - like stale hazelnut. P: Decently bright, but not aggressive, it goes right into the spices and herbs. There's some vegetal character adding richness, but it never leaps into the foreground. There are hints of fruit (orange, lemon) at points, but there really isn't much in that dimension, which surprises me since this gin is blue. This is very balanced, but also complex. I get the juniper, but there are lots of other flavors here. There's a bit of a floral character flitting throughout, but it's far from overwhelming (this is no Nolet's). This isn't that punchy gin that you'd drown in a fruity cocktail, but it might work nicely in a martini with its complexity. The spices give some heat at times, but this is never harsh. It took me a bit, but I think that stale nuttiness might be coming from a sort of stale coriander. I don't think that makes it better or worse, but maybe I understand it better now. F: Kind of rich with a little nuttiness and still some vague herbs and spices. A faint vegetal character is in the rich backing. - Conclusion - This is a good gin. It's a new take, but it nails this really balanced character with some nice swirling complexity. I can easily sip this. I don't know why they decided it should be blue, but it's really good. Mellower than even Plymouth, but really nicely executed. I'd take this over Plymouth, though they don't seem suited to the same context. Likewise, I'd take Leopold's Navy Strength over this, though, again, not really the same context. Honestly, this seems a bit more in the realm of Frangelico and Chartreuse Green, but with less sweetness. The gin it reminds me most of is Sipsmith, but without that atrocious fishiness. Side by side, the fishiness in Sipsmith is intense. I think I would be inclined to take Pacific Voyager over this if I were looking for a gin though. This looks like it's heading for a 15. I really enjoy this and I definitely can see myself buying a bottle in the future, but it hasn't quite clicked with me to the point of being something I would consider a go-to for any cocktail and there are other spirits in the price range that I'd rather have neat. Thanks @ctbeck11 for the sample!

Brilliant gin! Nothing else like it out there!