Pothecary Gin
Pothecary Gin :44.8%ABV
Botanicals: Bulgarian juniper, Provencal lavender, Anatolian mulberries, Polish tilia flowers, Sicilian lemon
Flavour profile: floral
Garnish: pink grapefruit or orange zest
Dorset based friends Lukasz Dwornik and Martin Jennings decided that they had tasted too many sub-standard gins and resolved to do better themselves; a double gold in the 2016 San Francisco spirits competition suggests that they succeeded. The name Pothecary Gin is a nod to the believed historical remedial properties of gin. The bottle has the look of an old medicine receptacle, and to our eyes is classy and nicely restrained. We particularly like the printed botanical illustrations on the bottle.
All the botanicals are sourced from around the world, are organic, and hand foraged where possible. They are distilled separately to add an individual intensity of flavour, blended with English grain spirit then diluted to 44.8% ABV.
On the nose, the aromas positively burst from the bottle. Predominantly floral, with juniper and sweet honey coming through. Neat, the tastes are complex and intense with an over-riding taste of lavender. There are also savoury and sweet notes along with juniper. This is a smooth, warm drink that is evidently finely crafted.
Adding tonic, Franklin & Sons in this case, with an orange zest garnish , gave us a G&T that sang to us of summer; it took us to meadows, with bees buzzing in the lavender and blue skies above. A touch lyrical maybe, but the flavours are that intense.
We can see why this is an expensive gin (£38.85 for 500ml at Amazon) as this is a well made and finely crafted spirit with heightened flavours that will appeal to lovers of floral, herbal gins.
