As with any spirit drink or cocktail, there is an appropriate gin tasting ritual.

Gin is a clear spirit, mainly produced in the U.K., but many other countries are as well into the producing of the spirit, especially Germany, Netherlands, and France.

Generally its aging takes 3 to 6 months, and it is made from barley or corn, infused with botanicals, mainly juniper berries.

 

Follow these steps and learn about gin tasting, the very popular spirit drink.

 

Start with a dry gin tasting: Taste your gin, clear. Look at it, it must be clear, water-white, without dullness. You may find some gins are slightly different in color, with lemon hue or a color influenced by barrels since wood ageing is popular in gin too.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Favor bloated or curved glasses: the most famous glass for tasting gin is the “Copa de Balón” which translates into balloon glass. This type of glass favors the botanicals scent of your gin, making your drink taste better. It also helps keeping the drink cooler for longer and enhances the flavor due to its large space for ice garnishes.

 

Smell coffee between tastings to clean your palate: the smell of coffee beans is a great palate cleanser. You must have noticed, perfume shops often have small bowls of coffee beans to smell between perfumes.

 

Stir your glass so that the spirit mixes with the air: this motion of swirling the glass draws oxygen from the air to your drink, it helps making it feel less dry.

 

Examine the nose of the gin (smell). Then moisten your hand with gin and feel again: a drop of water into your gin helps realease the aromas and soften the alcohol. Smell and take your time to recognize each aroma that builds up your gin. Aromas appear in layers so you will scent them one after another.

 

Finally, pour gin, smell it, and try to detect the same aromas as the beginning of the tasting: put in mouth and let it rest to detect other aromas. Circulate in the throat and stop for a moment to discover which taste lingers.

 

Gin Tasting in Cocktails

And to close, here are two gin-based recipes.

 

GIN BRAMBLE

An easy and delicious recipe, of British origin.

For this cocktail you only need:

• Blackberry cream créme de mure,
• 60 ml of gin,
• 30 ml of fresh lemon juice,
• 15 ml of sugar syrup,
• 15 ml of blackberry liqueur,
• Ice.

Type of glass: rocks

Garnish: blackberries or raspberries

 

MARTINI GIN

A cocktail so simple that it only takes two ingredients. You can use any type of gin you like until you find your favorite flavor.

• 50 ml of gin
• 15 ml dry vermouth.
• Ice

Type of glass: Martini glass

Garnish: olives of your choice

 

Do you like these gin cocktail recipes? Don’t miss our best cocktails!

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