Initially, I wasn’t too wild about this gin. I work in a paint store and all I could think of with each sip was “this is straight-up turpentine.” However, after a bit, the shock of pine resin was over and I was able to explore the different botanicals hidden beneath the surface. Still very woody, but you get snippets of the volatile oils of sage and bay laurel—especially the sage as the rest of the botanicals fade. In college I had a field biology class where we took hikes around the California Bay Area and were able to sample the local flora like bay laurel, manzanita berry, huckleberry, and black sage. This gin takes me back to those hikes, but it’s still hard to get past the initial shock as the turpentine hits my tongue. I’m glad I’ve got a small bottle, as this won’t be my go-to gin. I’m glad I have tried something so far apart from the average, but it’s just kind of too much to handle at once.