Re-taste: 10 October 2024. I just made a batch of Negronis with this and they were stunning - the best I've ever made. The taste was literally surprising, it was so full-flavoured (I used Carpano Antica as the vermouth). Huh, after all this time I've found the secret - use the biggest flavour gin you can for a Negroni. Navy strength is good too but flavour intensity is the key. Delicate gins for a G&T, sure, but the Negroni needs a powerhouse gin to really work. I guess this was all obvious to many folk here but it's not a drink I often make as I was never pleased with it before - now I know why. This gin is probably unobtainable outside Australia but I'm sure you can get something similarly intense in your area. Cheers! "Excellent" : 88/100 (4.5 stars) -------------------------------- Blind gin tasting, Sydney, April 20, 2019. On Saturday I took part in a blind tasting of 9 gins and I'm recording the group consensus notes here in order of increasing score. Gin #4 on the day was Never-Never Distilling Co. Juniper Freak Gin, which was rated equal 1st in the scoring, and received enthusiastic compliments from everyone present. The gin is very much a ballad about juniper. It has a profile that is almost exclusively a showcase for that botanical and the intensity is such that you sense every possible aroma and flavour that can be extracted. Any criticism that this is just a "one-note" profile misses the point - it's meant to be that way. The nose is huge and full of baking spices, chamomile, elderflower, pepper, anise, aniseed, lemon and sage. There is also a big alcohol presence, but it's not detrimental and is appropriate for the huge aromas it has to carry. The palate is just as big with a black pepper note leading the way (I believe this is from pepperberry, an Australian botanical which is the only local ingredient used). This is followed by very strong juniper (but it's quite sweet as well as powerful), anise, lemon extract and a vibrant herbal potpourri. The finish is very long - it sails on and on and you keep getting little echoes of the palate. Adding tonic to this gin brought out even more of the oils rather than diluting it. It's a bullish, uncompromising gin. You might think that something as intense as this with such a focused character would lack nuance, but the layers it displays are surprising. "Excellent" : 88/100 (4.5 stars)