Stone Pine Original Dry Gin

Nose: Juniper, lemon, lime, bay leaf, rosemary. Palate: Smooth and soft on the arrival. Herbal and sweet with a very nice developing creamy texture. Juniper is certainly present but not to a dominant degree. Citrus and a host of botanicals are clearly just as important and there is a satisfying balance. There is an underpinning botanical sweetness to the palate that is attractive. Finish: Medium. Mild and pleasant, it gently flows into a mild herbal aftertaste. A perfectly acceptable and pleasant London-dry style gin with no off notes at all. It's very well composed and balanced, and a pleasure to drink neat. As a mixer it works very well in a gin and tonic, and I imagine it would be fine in all the classic cocktails. The only criticism is that it has little to differentiate it from a host of other middle-shelf gins. Given that, it all comes down to price and at AUS$75 this is nudging the upper edge of the envelope. I'm rating this on the good side of average, and I'm sure almost every gin drinker would enjoy it. However at the asking price the distillery has set themselves against some very tough competition. Tasted from a 30ml sampler, many thanks Wei. "Average" : 78/100 (2.75 stars)