Nose: Lavender, sage, thyme, rose, orange pomander, juniper. A rounded, soft and plush botanical nose with coniferous and citrus notes on the side, but rich and soothing overall. Palate: A huge floral and fragrantly spicy arrival that broadens out to a rich bittersweet herbaceous palate. Interesting and deep with bay leaf, cardamom and other spice & herbal notes emerging. Finish: Medium/long. An herbal flavour like sage seasoning in the aftertaste. The nose on this is very good - forceful, deep and richly textured. In comparison the palate was a slight let-down (but only slight) as it seemed to focus on a simpler and more direct floral-herbal base. In a way this gin is almost too robust to enjoy neat, the profile is so forceful. It's certainly not a subtle spirit. However surprisingly, considering the boldness of both nose and palate, this gin seems to disappear completely in a G&T. I guess that can be either good or bad, depending on your point of view. In this case the sweet floral character of the gin balances out all the bitterness of quinine in the tonic so the final drink is so balanced it is almost neutral. You know that saying "the whole is greater than the sum of its parts"? Well in this case the whole is precisely equal to its parts, and personally I prefer a G&T where I can still taste both the gin and the tonic as separate constituents. A good G&T needs a little fight going on. A very nice gin, impeccably made, but 97 seems wildly exaggerated as a score. "Good" : 84/100 (3.75 stars)