GIN POLL: Poll of Gin

I just treated myself to a bottle of Hendrick's, my first purchase as a college graduate. I'm really into just sipping it on the rocks right now.

http://farm1.static.flickr.com/31/45271635_0fa07b004a.jpg

In Praise of the Juniper Berry & Precious Botanicals: A GIN POLL

Fail.

NtrVP otm

Plymouth/Cork/Hendricks three-way tie.

Please can somebody do a gin poll that includes Blackwoods so I can vote? Thx.

voted jimmy mod

jesus that tesco gin looks like the worst shit ever

No New Amsterdam, poll -> fail

New Amsterdam is definitely my favourite right now, closely followed by Hendricks but they are very different drinks.

xp they do a value vodka and a value brandy as well.

Bombay Sapphire for me followed by Plymouth, regular Bombay and Boodles. Tanqueray's OK w/tonic.

thought I liked Hendricks but the last H-martini I had was too cukey and kinda bland. maybe the bartender used too much vermouth/overwhelmed the subtlty

haven't had a lot of these but this is missing old raj which is pretty incredible stuff

bluecoat is really nice too imo

Please can somebody do a gin poll that includes Blackwoods so I can vote? Thx.

I was going to say this, then noticed I said it in the last poll. (I have had two other different years since btw, and the taste really changes year on year.)

what's the story on genever - dutch gin. Never tried it, only read about it in the "amsterdam cops" novels where genever is treated with the hushed reverence afforded something that gets you really fucked up.

imagine a middle ground between gin and whiskey. it's fantastic stuff (the bols brand at least, that's the only one i've had)

gin: the sad juice.

Some of it is aged which is lovely, some of the harder core dutch I know like it as a chaser for lager but It actually mixes nicely with strong fruit juices such as grapefruit. Hasseltjes Oude Jenever and grapefruit juice is lovely.

One of the reasons I like New amsterdam so much is it is a pleasantly milder take on this flavour.

hendricks when i have the cash

bombay sapphire when i dont

^^^^^^

Anyone having trouble with the stuff? Once I passed thirty the days of guzzling gin like water ended :/

actually i am having a bit of a renaissance these days. a ginaissance if u will

xp have never been able to stomach gin in large quantities, despite doing fine with just about every other kind of alcohol!

I wish I liked Hendricks, but I do not.

Still never tried that Distillery 209 or whatever it was, from San Francisco, that I heard good things about.

Pink gins get you a-holed. Plymouth ftw. Tho Gordon's is fine for g&ts imo.

Hot gin and chicken stock for the working man.

Really want to try the Potrero Gin that Anchor Steam make but not seen in pennsylvania.

http://www.metalkingdom.net/album/img/d22/22671.jpg

my heart belongs to plymouth, though sometimes the girly flowerishness of tanqueray is necessary.

summer = so many gimlets.

I miss Tanqueray Malacca.

^^^^^^^^^^^^^

I want to try Hendrick's so bad. It is the best-looking bottle in the liquor store.

Hendrick's for gin and tonics, some descending order of pref for

Beefeater
Bombay Sapphire
Boodles British Gin
Burnett's Gin
Gilbey's Gin[16]
Plymouth Gin
Tanqueray #10

from there

Hendrick's makes the best G+T's humanly possible, but I'm not crazy about it in martinis. Prev. winner for G+T was the aforementioned extinct Malacca ;_; but not in a better way, just different

Beefeater and Sapphire martinis are both mmmmmmmmm

I put this stuff up with Hendrick's, for real - it is great

this video of it being bottled is cool if you loved the sesame street/mr rogers segments where you get to see how stuff is goin down at the factory

http://www.anchorbrewing.com/about_us/juniperogin_video.htm

it never in a million years would have occurred to me to wonder if Anchor made a gin, let alone that gin being any good

I didn't know it was them until after I'd had it! bought it cause the bottle & the copy on it was really cool & talked a good game - I LOVE Hendrick's, it is so delicious, but Junipero is worth a few g+t's worth of research imo - really crisp & good

hmmmmmmm must investigate Junipero then

Ditto!

they make whiskey too--apparently it's gritty and authentic in a gold rush sort of way. but at 70 bucks a bottle it hasn't made it in the budget yet.

John, I know what we'll be drinking when the scotch runs out! (should I reserve a bed in the hospital for the day after your wedding now, or just do a walk-in?)

most of that retro-whiskey is rye, right? I can't drink straight rye, there's some decent cocktails you can make with it but I can't see rye subbing for bourbon in my cabinet more than once or twice over the life of the drinker who stocks the cabinet i.e. me

i should probably try to get a package rate at the hospital.

absolute poison for me. can't seem to keep a bottle at home for more than a few days, especially now that g&t season is upon us. haven't tried many of these though. boodles usually serves well at my price point. hendricks is a divine treat. tanqueray is maybe overrated, but still good. i drink tanqueray and tonics with my mom on sundays, while my dad guzzles his preferred plastic bottle brand mixed with frozen canned orange juice.

yeah it's rye whiskey. bourbon is the better sipping beverage for sure but rye is better in like 95% of whiskey cocktails, and that's what i tend to make.

Hendricks is great. I really love Gordons Sloe Gin too.

is rye better in an old fashioned? that's pretty much the only mixed whiskey drink I fuck with except for the occasional julep

Plymouth for martinis

rye for old fashioneds and bourbon for juleps imo

rye is pretty amazing in an old fashioned

I've only tried like ten of these brands. I'll need to do some cramming over the next week. Not really, though.

a true-blue dipso bartender snob type dude tried to convince me that sapphire was str8 bullshit on par with gray goose but i can't really remember his evidence

i've heard that too but who gives a fuck if you like it? it's not super-overpriced like the goose is.

Come to me, delicious bottle of Bombay Sapphire. I will save you.

http://wequotedesign.com/images/stories/logos/bombay%20sapphire.jpg

something about it being made with the top and bottom sections of a distilling tank to fake the "just right" middle density, with whatever blue shit added?

i dunno, i'm not a gin man. i like rye!

If Tanqueray is overrated in general, I think that Bombay Sapphire may be overrated by people who fancy themselves gin snobs until they learn of all the other gins that are out there.

I remember thinking as a child that Bombay Sapphire had to be the most elegant and fantastic beverage, based on their magazine ads.

eh, sapphire tastes good, dont much care if it lives up to its claims tbh

sapphire's an above-average gin, giveable as a gift - I think hating on sapphire is some poseurism tbh

the man in question was no poseur in his love of drink

he moved to wisconsin!

thus he is untrustworthy

he could be right really I'm not a connoisseur but can for sure taste a decent-tasting gin & that's one - taste of people who drink over "they're making it rong" for me

I'll say again: I generally love being older, but hate how the gin hangovers get worse.

1) sapphire is clear, the bottle is blue, rite??

2) re: marketing, it's a relatively new brand and was marketed very very effectively--that accounts for some of the hate i would think.

new amsterdam tastes like orange cream or something blech

sapphire is clear, i have no idea what makes it different from reg bombay

hendricks is nice, martin miller is my frou frou gin of choice

oh distilled w/10 botanicals re:sapphire n/m

i don't fuck with beefeaters anymore, the higher proof usually gets me in trouble

ha i honestly thought the stuff was blue. shows what i know.

80 vs. 94 proof, different botanical recipes are the differences

O_o @ goole

hey i don't drink it!

do you not drink it because all this time youve been having curacao and tonics?

that would put me off "gin" too

ugh now i am thinking of a dry curacao martini

see I would drink that because it is blue

i'm trying to think of a blue drink i DO like now

xp lol

I cannot think of a single blue or green drink I've disliked

theres some stuff under your kitchen sink that i would not probably try

this was green and awful but i drank it as a kid bcz i loooved the ghostbusters.
http://chadwright.files.wordpress.com/2008/06/ecto_cooler.jpg

a true-blue dipso bartender snob type dude tried to convince me that sapphire was str8 bullshit on par with gray goose but i can't really remember his evidence
― goole, Wednesday, May 26, 2010 6:13 PM (39 minutes ago) Bookmark Suggest Ban Permalink

tbf u can tell when you taste it; doesn't taste any better than gordon's I think

hendricks G&T w/cucumber is v.nice

omg I totally forgot that that existed xp

theres some stuff under your kitchen sink that i would not probably try

depends on whether you're having to spend january in the midwest iirc

damn I want some ecto cooler right now

10% fruit juice, 90% stuff from under your kitchen sink

One of the proto energy drink makers (skeleteens i think) made something called "Brainwash" that had such intense blue coloring that it would turn your shit a verdant forest green for about a day afterwards.

it was awesome.

i've always wanted to try chartreuse but it's a pricy bottle.

dude high five! brainwash was the best shit ever!!! black lemonade was awesome too

chartreuse is wonderful stuff

sapphire = great price to performance ratio IMO

never a dud always classic

(though a lot of the newer top shelf stuff is great)

basically as american craft distilling grows we're going to be awash in really good, inexpensive gin afaict

also:

bartenders that can make a proper whiskey old fashioned are a treasure

fuck those guys that throw a cherry, two lemon slices, then top it with coke and sweet & sour

you're so otm about that, i don't even order old fashions anymore because they always get fucked up. it's like half the time they don't even know what they are.

I've only had Junipero once when on vacation, but I think I had as much of a bottle as comfortably possible over a 24 hour period. I want to say that they might be part of the Anchor Distillery sale that is going on (has happened?) and the standard rumors about a possible drop in quality apply. I'd bet they get wider distribution too, though. Still want to try the Anchor whiskies.

I prefer Tanqueray martinis with a twist instead of olives because of the citrus notes, especially their #10. Bombay/Beefeater are kind of a no-strong-flavors standard, Bombay Sapphire is overly flavorful, and Hendricks is a good compromise between the two, with better flavor overall.

Haven't had too much of the rest of the list.

fuck those guys that throw a cherry, two lemon slices, then top it with coke and sweet & sour

― m@tt (upper mississippi sh@kedown), Wednesday, 26 May 2010 14:07 (4 minutes ago) Bookmark Suggest Ban Permalink

I've had some bad old fashioneds but never that bad, that's an abomination.

Oh yeah, Junipero is also distinct in that it overs just below 100 proof (around 99ish).

Anymore, I will drink well gin as long as it's not the absolute bottom of the shelf when I'm out, since I will get g&ts and the tonic water is complete crap most places.

forgot that I tried an Old Raj martini last winter. didn't knock me out taste-wise, definitely had that high-octane sting

i've never heard of lemon slices as a corruption of the old fashioned. orange slices is semi-standard (unfortunately), lemon is wtf.

The classic old fashioned recipe is one (or maybe just a half) orange slice and one cherry, not a damn fruit cocktail.

this gin turned up in my local wine/liquor store recently, modestly priced/anybody tried Broker's

http://blogs.dallasobserver.com/cityofate/brokers%20gin.jpeg

Is that bottle wearing a hat?

oh I would totally buy that just for the bottle

Pretty sure I DIED referenced that up-thread, and you should really listen to him. He knows from a liquor selection.

Oh my gosh, a bottle in a derby! I am helpless.

what if there was a blue bottle with a hat???

that would be the only thing I drank, basically

gis for blue bottle hat returned this, fyi

http://farm1.static.flickr.com/4/7592372_c3d6b025f0.jpg

goole, this is a dangerous line of reasoning, as so much goodness will surely knock the sun out of orbit.

Broker's is a good quality gin and the hat is a big lol the whole time you're working on the bottle! It's a classic quality gin, nothing super-distinctive but really nice

the hat put me off buying it TBH

my mom drank old fashioneds back in the day, meticulously muddled by my dad, a cocktail classic. nice to see em rediscovered.

gis for blue bottle hat returned this, fyi

okay now that I see the end result of my slippery slope, I have a few life-decisions to make

Namely, whether to wear a costume as a pink rabbit or simply to go the full transplantation route.

I've been conscientiously striking names from my list of people on this thread I wouldn't drink gin with.

I am not sure what a bunny transplantation would even mean

This is why you should drink more gin.

also I would completely endorse an ILX Fancy A Gin (lol I am feeling sensitive today otherwise I totally would have acronymized that)

I think you're onto something there. The weather's right for it.

The classic old fashioned recipe is one (or maybe just a half) orange slice and one cherry, not a damn fruit cocktail.

― mh, Wednesday, May 26, 2010 3:21 PM (15 minutes ago) Bookmark Suggest Ban Permalink

sorry to get on this but the classic old fashioned recipe is sugar, water, bitters, and spirits (maybe, just maybe a lemon twist)--fruit in the glass came later.

hendrick's duh

Basically, never order an old fashioned. I have been consistently disappointed. When I go out, I almost never order anything with more than two common ingredients. This is why we stock our own bars at home.

^ this with old fashioneds. Started drinking them about five or so years ago after reading about them. Hardly ever had a good one apart from from expensive hotel bars. It's sometimes like they're just trying to wing it. DON'T put that orange juice in there dammit, etc. Last one I had was ice-crammed, so I've given up now and just make them myself if I have them at all.

The old-fashioned is my "test drink" for a really good bar/bartender. If I get one that tastes like slightly sweet whiskey with a hint of bitters and NOT sweetened soda water with a hint of whiskey taste then I know I have found a place where I could become a regular.

have we done the best tea poll yet

and if we do can we pls include lady grey

everyone otm about old fashioneds and incompetent bartenders. though i admit i owe most of my appreciation of the drink to don draper.

i wish we had store brand "value" alcohol in america

1. Miller's Westbourne Strength
2. Plymouth Navy Strength

Basically, never order an old fashioned. I have been consistently disappointed. When I go out, I almost never order anything with more than two common ingredients. This is why we stock our own bars at home.

this is true and was so depressing because when you're a young bookish type you harbor fantasies of ordering an old fashioned in a dark bar and nursing it while you contemplate, y'know, life, and shit. and instead you get people using a fucking mixer. but oddly, one of the best old-fashioneds I ever had was in some mega-lit times square bar, possibly even the espn sportzone one - I ordered it, dude took a look at me, and got down to fucking business. cold, touch of sweet, bracing, good stuff.

that is an encouraging and heartwarming story imo

tequila old fashioneds are so good

I'd rather a garnish-free old fashioned, too. It's one where I don't mind something vaguely subtle though.

A tequila old fashioned? W/anejo, right? That could be interesting, or... a trap

tanqueray #10 is fukkin sweet

this evening my wife said "let's have a glass of wine w/dinner." I said "YOU have a glass of wine" and broke out the bombay sapphire, mixed a zesty martini w/twist. hit the spot.

thank you ILX!

What are you doin posting? Get to drinking!

drinkin tanq w/schweppes and 1/6 lime atm

i looooove gin
was about to buy a bottle of tanqueray last week but decided it wasn't a good idea to keep it around the house

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XAU4B4Fmhkg

sadly, this kids in the hall sketch (bruce monologue) is not on the youtubes

Drunk on love? NO..... Drunk on gin!

"let's have a glassbottle of wine w/dinner."

Each.

all right let me tell you guys about a thing I am having - at the wine store down the street, which is a totally awesome little two-guys-with-a-plan store, they got some hoity-toity vermouths from France - not super break-the-bank but a cut above the shelf-of-mixers vermouth. copped a bottle of that, came home and looked up some recipes and made what is called a Farmer's Cocktail. 1 & 1/2 oz gin, 3/4 oz sweet vermouth, 3/4 oz dry vermouth (this was the classy import vermouth), 2 dashes bitters. You guys this drink is giving me a new and very positive outlook on life. Everybody have you a farmer's cocktail when you get a chance, it's like a martini in surround sound or cinemascope or something. man oh man.

Dolin?

You are correct sir! They had two other Dolins there, including this apertif thing I had in my hand but then I saw that it was read - red wine basically imperils my singing voice so I put it back even though man it sounded good

do sweet & dry vermouth cancel each other out or combine? drink sounds amazing but my exp w/martinis & sweet vermouth has been less than stellar

wow here is a protocol on how to turn vodka into gin as well as some cookbook reviews

man I don't know how this would be with a less tasty vermouth but they do not cancel each other out. like, I am not a foodie kinda dude, usually when people start talking about complex tastes I start looking for the exit, but the gin + sweet + dry combo here is like three guitarists playing the same riff in different styles or on different axes. this is my new default drink as of thu 5:35 p.m.

the Black Oak Arkansas of cocktails (three lead guitarists)

Dolin is amazing stuff! It'll turn anyone into a vermouth drinker and end the scourge of the dry martini.

I have become a big fan of the gin and it recently. New amsterdam and noilly pratt. Can't say I've evr had Dolin but living in Turin turned me into a straight vermouth driker so I'd like to.

from reports which if I told any connoisseurs about 'em they'd cry, any liqueur/spirit type deal you get away from the big cities in Italy will basically make you cry with joy

agree with the vermouth sentiment. think i fell prey to dry martini superiority complex at some point, but later realized i could just drink cold gin or vodka in the glass if that's all i wanted. well-mixed martini is a wonderful thing. the balance is tough though -- maybe bartenders jump to the conclusion that you either want to taste the gin/vodka or you just want something sweet and alcoholic? have gotten in trouble drinking straight vermouth...

hat is called a Farmer's Cocktail. 1 & 1/2 oz gin, 3/4 oz sweet vermouth, 3/4 oz dry vermouth (this was the classy import vermouth), 2 dashes bitters.

just made this! tanqueray, dolin sweet and dry, 1 dash aromatic, 1 dash orange. refreshing!

the Black Oak Arkansas of cocktails (three lead guitarists)

I larfed the first time I read this, and again when I reread this a couple hours later.

Old Raj, 209, Junipero. That's what's up.

Listen, I just had Hendrick's on the rocks, and then a Tanqueray Gimlet. Gimlets are my new jam. I also had an Abita Strawberry Lager and about 3 or 5 Salty Dogs.

Listen, I just had Hendrick's on the rocks

me too, for purposes of comparison (voted for tanqueray 10). was delicious. plus whiskey & beers, which were also but not quite as delicious.

I have a headache now :/

sapphire, tho tbh I have not tried a lot of these. Gilbey's deserves a nod for the quality/value ratio.

I like a good dry martini or highball, but I have to tread lightly b/c the gin haze can bring out the mean drunk in me.

I have a headache now :/

you were doing fine til you got to the "3 to 5 salty dogs"

I forgot to get bread from the supermarket and keep looking at this thread thinking I shd get some Hendrick's. Really don't want to because I've been feeling like hell recently, so am kinda staying off the booze, but gin is so nice. Go away thread, stop making me want to buy gin.

Does remind me when we had a family get-together a few years ago now, and my nan was there, who is a fiend for gin (now she's got Alzheimer's she 'absent mindedly' steals it from M&S). She'd been on the g+ts the day before, as we all had, and the next day, people started making their way down for breakfast, and my nan was sitting out at a table in the garden, having a glass of water.

'Back on the gin, nan!' I joked, you know, sort of early morning pleasantry.
'Yes, dear, just a refresher.'
I smiled uncertainly, made tea, went and joined her, and lo! yes, the scent of juniper was not coming from anywhere in the garden.

Ok, I've got some gin.

It's only 12:20 but I've been up since quite early and have got a few things done. Was going to try and write something this afternoon, but when I the words got all confused and turned out to be meaningless and that confused my thoughts, and I banged my fist on the table and stared dumbly out of the window thinking about the bottle of gin I've got.

So I reckon it's time for a gin. Probably a gin and tonic. Maybe the gin will help me get other things done! Although I should probably do important things like change the bulbs in the kitchen and sort out the council tax first. Then I will feel like I've deserved it.

Automatic thread bump. This poll is closing tomorrow.

Automatic thread bump. This poll's results are now in.

man there is some kinda different kind of beefeater at the liquor store next to where I'm staying and it looks good

Damn, forgot to vote! I would have voted for Plymouth or Hendricks so it wouldn't have mattered anyway.

So I have this huge bottle of Hendrick's and all these fresh strawberries and I'm staring at them thinking "There must be a very, very delicious cooler in here somewhere!!" Maybe sliced/lightly muddled strawberries with some gin and a splash of soda? jjusten, any recommendations?

I found it!! 1 to 2 strawberries (they were in chunks) muddled thoroughly with a kiss of Rose's Lime Juice, topped with an ounce or two of gin, with a few ice cubes thrown in, and a splash of club soda. If you maybe added some mint, this would be THE ULTIMATE SUMMER REFRESHMENT

wow!

'Twas contemplating my next gin purchase, and I believe that will be the one!

Excellent!

picked up a bottle of bluecoat this evening. used it in a G&T but maybe it's better for martinis? it had a kind of rubber cement thing going on...

The husband & I bought a bottle of Hendrick's to celebrate our birthday week. Boy, it was something very special. The Seagram's I am drinking now tastes so bad in comparison.

seagrams is vile

(also the very first gin i ever drank, surprised i ever kept drinking gin)

What a weird coincidence, I JUST went upstairs to pour myself some Hendrick's on the rocks after abt a week and a half of neglecting it.

People are savages are voting for the too-pineconed taste of Sapphire. It's ok, but no means a best or even go-to.

i'd rate tanqueray over sapphire, personally

sin

I would too.

Plymouth Gin - first distilled in 1793 (this is very nice too)

liked this in the past but a couple recent martinis made me decide it is bland

Boodles British Gin

been rocking this w/tonic lately - and the slightly raw flavors make for an "aggro" martini

boodles price is right too, just over $20 US for a fifth (tho I noticed one upscale wine store in my hood has marked it up to sapphire level)

Plymouth is neat drinking gin and super yummy

fuck zero votes for beefeater? its a quality gin and will serve u well.

Na bro Beefeater is some p bad shit

Lies! It's great for g&t use since it's more neutral.

beefeater is teh vile

i am shocked by this! beefeater and tanq are essentially the 2 london dry prototypes.

hendricks makes a good g&t but i'm not sure i would do much else with it.

guess i need to buy some bombay sapphire next since it's rated so highly!

full disclosure--i bumped this after spending too much $$$ on an american gin that is legit terrible and then running back to my bottle of beefeater where i at least understand what i'm getting.

Before my anosmia (1 year ago THIS VERY DAY!) my favorite martinis were Beefeater or Kettel One. Both had a nice bite that you wouldn't get with premium/ultra-premium stuff, but they weren't harsh.

New Amsterdam is definitely my favourite right now

???

i tried this once because it was pretty cheap on sale and it tasted really gross imo, dnw orange flavored gin! i did finish it tho : \

at home i switch between tanq and bombay sapphire, once in a while i splurge and get hendricks or tanq 10. when i'm out i often go for plymouth.
i do think beefeater is a step below but passable, good bang for your buck when it's on sale

for a sub $20 spirit new amsterdam is pretty good but if you can afford anything better then you need to get that better thing.

tanq & bombay sapphire always under $20 at tj's ; )

lol clearly we live in diff states!!

so weird that bombay sapphire would win this - one of my least favourites

Bombay Sapphire is a mystery to me as well. Plymouth and Hendricks (hot gin and water is a good one with it, Plymouth for pink gins).

It's all about image with Bombay Sapphire: fancy bottle, sponsorship of design awards etc. Very much style over substance imo.

^ also the most popular gin w/ vodka drinkers ime

I miss Tanqueray Malacca.

― clay/tone nut/mother (doo dah), Wednesday, May 26, 2010 10:42 AM (8 months ago) Bookmark Suggest Ban Permalink
^^^^^^^^^^^^^

― Marni and Louboutin: coming to Tuesdays this fall on FOX (HI DERE), Wednesday, May 26, 2010 11:08 AM (8 months ago) Bookmark Suggest Ban Permalink

^^^^^^^^^^^^^

When I turned 21, gin became the first hard liquor I fell in love with. I went for it for the following reasons:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TFUFh-RybEE

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QSih4o2YfmA

i have never seen that malacca - was it only in the states?

According to wikipedia, it was introduced in 2000 and discontinued in 2004. These were my peak years of hard drinking, and I only found Malacca twice in stores, both in the year 2000. So maybe it was American-only or maybe it was just plain under-distributed.

I mean, if I wasn't in a liquor store every day during that time period, I was in there every other day.

Can't drink gin no more after I gave it up due to cutting out hard liquor (was just getting drunk too often).

But when I did, Tanqueray 10 and Bombay Sapphire were my go-tos.

ugh so i'm probably going to dump the vast majority of this bottle of small's gin i bought yesterday--i cannot even think of a gin cocktail it would function in.

feeling offtm re: what i said about american gins upthread :(

junipero is an excellent product
bluecoat is an idiosyncratic product, but you can work with it
small's, despite being from the same people that are making the v. highly regarded ransom old tom gin, is vile

i haven't heard enough positive stuff about g'vine or deaths door or 209 or aviation to think they're worth my money.

got some of this last night - http://casadeltequila.ch/images/gin-sipsmith-gin.jpg

it is v good

http://www.nytimes.com/2011/02/04/dining/04tipsy.html?_r=1&hp

I'm very, very partial to Hendrick's and tonic these days.

Hendricks is good in a gimlet.

soooo otm

Don't think I've consciously ordered a gimlet.

it always seems to fall behind daiquiris and margaritas in terms of lime sours

anyways, after my awful experience i want out today and bought some tanq and a fresh bottle on n.p. dry. so it's martini time real soon!

what time shall I drop in?

you'd be welcome anytime but it would prob take a lot of martinis for you to want to brave our weather right now!

skeptical about new US gins till a restaurant waiter talked me into trying Death's Door - it's good despite the somewhat tasteless name. bought a fifth and it certainly "held up" for home mixing and went fast. $35 a fifth so it's not going to be my go-to but still, from Wisconsin no less

http://dandm.com/media/catalog/product/cache/1/image/9df78eab33525d08d6e5fb8d27136e95/1/8/185067-lg_6.jpg

We're just now getting New Amsterdam. Yeah, for 15 bucks, it's pretty good. Better than Seagrams at any rate.

Bugs me that it's E&J selling "New Amsterdam" out of Modesto. Kinda like how Texas Roadhouse is headquartered in Louisville, Ky.

According to wikipedia, it was introduced in 2000 and discontinued in 2004. These were my peak years of hard drinking, and I only found Malacca twice in stores, both in the year 2000. So maybe it was American-only or maybe it was just plain under-distributed.

― kkvgz, Wednesday, February 2, 2011 1:55 PM (2 years ago) Bookmark Flag Post Permalink

http://drinks.seriouseats.com/2013/03/gin-revival-tanqueray-malacca-reissued-gin-review-how-does-it-compare-to-tanqueray-london-dry.html?ref=excerpt_readmore

Finally tried Junipero the other night in combination with Fever Tree tonic water. Ridiculously brilliant.

OMG Malacca. As if we will get it in Pennsylvania :(

I miss Tanqueray Malacca.

― clay/tone nut/mother (doo dah), Wednesday, May 26, 2010 10:42 AM (8 months ago) Bookmark Suggest Ban Permalink
^^^^^^^^^^^^^

― Marni and Louboutin: coming to Tuesdays this fall on FOX (HI DERE), Wednesday, May 26, 2010 11:08 AM (8 months ago) Bookmark Suggest Ban Permalink

^^^^^^^^^^^^^

― kkvgz, Wednesday, February 2, 2011 8:22 AM (3 years ago) Bookmark Flag Post Permalink

When I turned 21, gin became the first hard liquor I fell in love with. I went for it for the following reasons:

http://www.youtube.com/v/TFUFh-RybEE&fs=1&hl=en

http://www.youtube.com/v/QSih4o2YfmA&fs=1&hl=en

― kkvgz, Wednesday, February 2, 2011 8:32 AM (3 years ago) Bookmark Flag Post Permalink

i have never seen that malacca - was it only in the states?

― just sayin, Wednesday, February 2, 2011 8:47 AM (3 years ago) Bookmark Flag Post Permalink

According to wikipedia, it was introduced in 2000 and discontinued in 2004. These were my peak years of hard drinking, and I only found Malacca twice in stores, both in the year 2000. So maybe it was American-only or maybe it was just plain under-distributed.

― kkvgz, Wednesday, February 2, 2011 8:55 AM (3 years ago) Bookmark Flag Post Permalink

***paging doo dah*** ***paging HI DERE***

http://www.bonappetit.com/columns/a-bottle-in-front-of-me/article/tanqueray-malacca-gin-reviewed-by-the-bon-appetit-foodist

This is from last year so hopefully it's still around. They certainly haven't been stocking it in my local liquor store, but I'm definitely going to ask about it.

i'm still seeing it around

I discovered Aviation gin last month.

xxp

http://drinks.seriouseats.com/2013/03/gin-revival-tanqueray-malacca-reissued-gin-review-how-does-it-compare-to-tanqueray-london-dry.html?ref=excerpt_readmore

― just sayin, Sunday, 3 March 2013 20:19 (1 year ago) Bookmark Flag Post Permalink

Oh man. Whoops.

Only seriously began drinking gin as my default liquor last summer. On 1 January I rang in the new year with a Bombay Sapphire & grapefruit juice, cooled off with with genuine ice from the Toronto ice storm. (I'd saved a twig encased in ice to show my Frozen-obsessed niece on the webcam, y'see.)

still no way to get Junipero near here :/

You should fix that.

St. George Terroir is a ridiculously good gin as well. Picked up a full bottle for my birthday, but you can get smaller samplers too.

http://www.stgeorgespirits.com/spirit/terroir-gin/

http://www.barnonedrinks.com/tips/dictionary/images/6052.jpg

This is my go to gin, absolutely love it.

Wow one that REALLY is blue!

got a bottle of some boutique gin called "The Botanist" -- really liking it.

Big fans of Greenhook in the Mod household

Botanist a favourite here as well. Really mild & rich and reasonably easy to acquire.

yeah Botanist is my go-to when I'm out (and the bar has it), should probably get a bottle for home too

Holy shit no Miller's in this list? My fave by a long shot.

Botanist is good.

Monkey 47 is outrageously priced but excellent.

I'm making sloe gin for the first time. Although most recipes don't mention it I sterilised the mason jar I'm keeping it in. This morning my wife, bless her heart, opened the jar and stuck her hand it because she thought it was full of raisins. Will it be OK?

Where had she been sticking her grubby mitts beforehand?

I mean, alcohol sterilises things, doesn’t it?

Well that was my thinking.

Alcohol needs to be above 60 or 70% for sterilization I think - but I wouldn't worry about it.

good morning!

This poll was before I'd devoted serious time to gin. I don't even actually know what I'd say is my "favorite" gin these days because I think you have to differentiate between, say, martini gins — which really showcase the gin itself — and a gin you use for other mixing, in Tom Collinses or Southsides or what have you. Our default home gin these days is original Bombay dry — not Sapphire, which is nice for martinis but its botanicals get in the way of other ingredients imo. Monkey Shoulder is very good, and I've had some delicious gins from Edinburgh, as well as some delicious Navy-strength gins (which make good if powerful gimlets). Of the "New Western" gins, Tanqueray 10 very good, and of course so is Hendrick's, which we often have around. In the last few years we've gravitated away from the New Westerns back to basic London Dry styles — I like their simplicity. But it's also nice to live in an era when we have access to so many options.

My go-to is Broker's, because it comes with a little bowler cap. But I am a gin philistine and don't really differentiate between them all, at least within each particular style.

Weirdly, Mississippi is producing good gins even though most Mississippi bar patrons won't touch the stuff. Bristow (from Cathead Distillery) is my favorite. Wonderbird is highly regarded though I thought it was oddly lemony when I tried it.

I hated Hendricks the first time I tried it but I've done a lot of tasting since then, so I got a 50ml bottle (5 bucks!) recently to give it another chance.

Hendrick's is my go-to at bars: a solid G&T gin and an excellent martini gin. For a dozen years I insisted on a twist with the faintest of bitters rinse; now I'm going with cocktail onions (i.e. a Gibson) and no rinse.

I've become fond of Empress 1908 (it looks like purple Robitussin) and Esme.

Empress is good yeah (and love that butterfly pea color). And we are also Gibson fans, although I might toss an olive in there too.

I was fond of Tanqueray Rangpur but haven't seen on shelves for a year

couple years ago i had a bottle each of Italicus and Empress and mixed them. those were killer martinis

Beefeater getting no votes is lame

Beefeater's my favorite of the cheaper gins, equally solid with martinis and G&Ts.

couple years ago i had a bottle each of Italicus and Empress and mixed them. those were killer martinis

― Half Japanese Breakfast (outdoor_miner)

my man

if you can find it, this is distilled in Oregon and is the best gin I have ever had

https://swallowtailspirits.com/our-spirits

(the yellow-label "small batch" stuff)

glad I thread-searched because I was about to make the same comment I made twelve years ago

any tonic water recommendations? I feel like the landscape for those has expanded as much as gins in the last decade

Fever Tree and Q are both good, of the widely available boutique brands. I also like the Jack Rudy tonic syrup that you mix with soda.

For tonic water, it's Fever-Tree all the way: usually the Premium Indian, but their Mediterranean also has its uses.

Maria & Craig's CBD Botanical Spirit makes for a very nice way of adding flavours to a straight-up Tanqueray/tonic.

Best recent gin discovery is Hotham's Cardamom, which also works stunningly well instead of vodka in an espresso martini.

A shout-out also for Slingsby Marmalade, which is local to us and totally beautiful.

Victory Gin

My wife had a martini with Empress last month and liked it.

Standards are Hendrick's for martinis and Plymouth for everything else.

I’m sure no one cares about my opinion, but since I’ve been drinking gin enthusiastically for 20 years I’ll give it to you anyway. Plymouth is the best gin, it tastes smooth and round (thus sometimes mistaken for bland). Bombay Sapphire is great… slightly more botanical, but really not that much different from other premium gins; do a taste test and you will see what I mean. Broker’s is also an excellent gin, idc about the stupid bowler hat that actually gets in the way. Personally I don’t care for Hendricks because of its cukey flavor. Maybe it’s good in a g&t, no way do I want it in a martini. Then we go down to the next level, where there’s Beefeater, Tanqueray, and Gordon’s. They’re all acceptable but I would try my very best not to settle for a martini made with any of them. I had a Beefeater martini last week as bad luck would have it and found it rather peppery. But I would happily have any of those brands in a g&t, I am not a snob. Then there are the American gins… frankly I don’t trust them. Aviation? No. Dorothy Parker? Hell no. Those are the ones I’ve tried. I think there’s something called Brooklyn Gin - I don’t want it. Gin was perfected in England 150 years ago, let’s be real.

I will have some proper gin thoughts tomorrow. But not when I’m about to sleep. Not due to gin, I’m just tired.

I’m sure no one cares about my opinion, but

This is the internet. We all want to hear your opinion.

Josefa otm about Hendricks -- in the wrong mood I just go, ugh.

I have extreme taste in gin I think? meaning I only like the aggressively botanical gins (of which there are dozens of local/regional options), which I drink straight o_O, though they're all good in G&Ts too. I have never made myself a martini

Come over after 5. I'll mix ya a Negroni.

Aw thanks, Alfred

That reminds me that I did make a few hyper-local Negronis a few summers back with one of those gins, this amazingly delicious-but-odd honey vermouth, and a local version of Campari called Amermalade. It was pretty great!

lol

Fabulous name.

Anyone else enjoy gin bloody marys? I think a former chef/coworker turned me onto these and have been having a couple on weekends lately. Tanqueray is good but beefeater has also worked fine

I'm suspicious of mimosas and Bloody Marys, so it's never occurred to me to switch with gin. I may try one on Saturday if a friend hosts a World Cup watch party at 9 a.m.