Hayman's Old Tom Gin

Nose of strong juniper, coriander, lemon, orange, lime, tree bark. Sweet and fruity on the palate, oranges, berries, vanilla, a little sugary, herbs and spices, gentian, and juniper. Sweet and spicy finish. My first old tom. Very interesting.

Reasonably smooth and balanced, light juniper and citrus, slightest bitterness. It's just rather indistinct from a London Dry and feels entirely superfluous after having already tasted Hayman's London Dry and Hayman's Cordial Gin.

Gently sweet, rounded juniper with a light citrus edge

Old tom gin (a sweetened gin) was originally created to hide the awful taste of inferior gin. I wouldn't go out of my way to drink an old tom gin neat, but this is one of the better one's out there. The nose has a bit of pine needles and juniper. On the palate the sweetness hits you first, followed by some citrus notes and the juniper finds its way in there at the end. The finish is short but not too hot. Drinking this neat is pretty uneventful. It's in no way bad, just boring. However, as a cocktail ingredient this is one of best old tom gins out there. I always have this stocked at my home bar and unless the cocktail recipe calls for an aged old tom gin (think Ransom), I use this one. The value is also hard to beat, you can get this for under $25. Overall, I would give this a 3 neat and a 4 if using it in cocktails, so I will take the average and go with a 3.5.

Might be my favorite gin — the juniper comes through well, but it is not overly piney; it is nicely floral and also citrusy. Perfect for sipping, a martini, or a gin and tonic. My favorite way to take it: 2 oz. gin, a can of Fever Tree Light Tonic, and a couple dashes of Regan’s Orange Bitters, garnished with an orange peel (and a grapefruit peel when I’ve got it).