Search results for: elephant gin
During a trip to Africa three years ago, Robin Gerlach witnessed first-hand the plight of the African elephant. Ivory poaching has taken its toll on many species and forest elephants have lost much of their roaming grounds to farming. He met wildlife photographer Tessa Wienker, who was working with Space for Elephants Foundation, an organisation that helps to create new paths for elephants to allow them to migrate safely. The pair decided to team up and create a socially-minded business to help preserve African wildlife for future generations. “We didn’t want to create a charity, we wanted to create a product that people could touch,” said Mr Gerlach. Mr Gerlach, a keen gin enthusiast, had always dreamed of running his own still. He began researching African botanicals to find out if he could create a unique London gin with an African spin. “Gin can be boring, all citrus and juniper,” he said. “I wanted to do something new.” He found a schnapps distillery in Germany that was willing to make gin for the pair in its downtime. It took a year, 30 iterations, and many thousands of wasted litres, before the recipe for Elephant Gin was perfected.
Elephant Gin and its founders are passionate about elephant conservation and strongly believe that the current generation has a responsibility to support the African wildlife of today, so others may continue to enjoy it in the future. By contributing 15% of its profits to Big Life Foundation and Space For Elephants, Elephant Gin takes an active part in supporting the foundations’ activities.
Crystal clear in colour. Aromatic dry pine, lavender, freshly cut celery, root ginger, grapefruit and orange zest. The palate shows dry pine and sweet floral flavours with rounding angelica root woodiness, zesty citrus and zingy cinammon spice. The finish shows pine, camphor and lavender with lemon zest, ginger and black pepper spice.
During a trip to Africa three years ago, Robin Gerlach witnessed first-hand the plight of the African elephant. Ivory poaching has taken its toll on many species and forest elephants have lost much of their roaming grounds to farming. He met wildlife photographer Tessa Wienker, who was working with Space for Elephants Foundation, an organisation that helps to create new paths for elephants to allow them to migrate safely. The pair decided to team up and create a socially-minded business to help preserve African wildlife for future generations. “We didn’t want to create a charity, we wanted to create a product that people could touch,” said Mr Gerlach. Mr Gerlach, a keen gin enthusiast, had always dreamed of running his own still. He began researching African botanicals to find out if he could create a unique London gin with an African spin. “Gin can be boring, all citrus and juniper,” he said. “I wanted to do something new.” He found a schnapps distillery in Germany that was willing to make gin for the pair in its downtime. It took a year, 30 iterations, and many thousands of wasted litres, before the recipe for Elephant Gin was perfected.
Elephant Gin and its founders are passionate about elephant conservation and strongly believe that the current generation has a responsibility to support the African wildlife of today, so others may continue to enjoy it in the future. By contributing 15% of its profits to Big Life Foundation and Space For Elephants, Elephant Gin takes an active part in supporting the foundations’ activities.
Hazy, crimson red in colour. The bouquet shows red berry and sloe berry fruit with cracked black pepper and faint grilled almond. Brawny cracked black pepper spice and tart sloe berry fruit with faint lavender. Relatively dry compared to some other sloe gins. Raspberry, sloe berries, cracked black pepper and faint lavender. Some will be attracted by this sloe gin’s unfiltered hazy appearance while others will find it off-putting. The palate is drier, more tart, than many other sloe gins – perhaps a tad to dry and peppery for some. We liked the pronounced sloe berry fruit flavours and subtle lavender notes.
The history of Akashi Sake Brewery co.,ltd stretches back to the end of the Tokugawa Period (1600-1867), when the company produced soy sauce and traded in rice. The company incorporated in 1918, after which it made the most of a geographic location ideal for making fine sake. Over the years, Akashi Sake Brewery has expanded and modernized its sake-brewing activities, and now produces and sells a wide variety of alcohol products. These include premium sakes, several varieties of the distilled spirit shochu, and the traditional flavoring mirin. The city of Akashi has also grown since its humbler beginnings as a fishing village. But the city is still known throughout Japan for the delicious fish caught in the fast-moving straits just offshore. In particular, Akashi tai, or sea bream, is esteemed nationwide as the best in Japan. It is this much-lauded fish from which Akashi Sake Brewery’s premium junmai sake Akashi-tai takes its name. In brewing its select sakes, Akashi Sake Brewery uses only the choicest ingredients, often produced locally. For example, the company uses the yamada-nishiki variety of rice — a superior strain — grown in the region just north of Akashi. We at Akashi Sake Brewery Co., Ltd. pride ourselves on maintaining a traditional handcrafted approach to creating the finest Japanese sake. Brewing superior sake by hand requires artisans to hone all five senses to interact with the natural processes of fermentation and flavor development.
This citrus, fruit forward sake has been infused with macerated yuzu, bringing with it maximum mouth-puckering tartness and a cloudy lemon hue. Light and refreshing on the finish.
Apr24
Puerto de Indias Dry Gin – Pure Black Edition
Comments Off on Puerto de Indias Dry Gin – Pure Black Edition
Situated a few miles outside of Seville, the family-run distillery of Los Alcores de Carmona has been crafting fine spirits since 1880. In its picturesque rural location surrounded by meadows, the distillery is built on the ruins of an ancient Arabian mill and Roman thermal baths. Expertly marrying the past with the present, Puerto de Indias’ portfolio of gins are distilled on 150 year-old copper stills, which operate side by side with innovative modern production methods. Infused with natural ingredients and botanicals from the sun-drenched region of Seville, Spain, these aromatic gins fill the senses with the spirit of Andalucía. Paying homage to its heritage, Puerto de Indias takes its name from Seville’s port which came to prominence during the 1500s, a period when Spain began extensively trading with the recently-discovered New World. In a nod to its maritime roots, the gin’s unique bottle shape is inspired by the Torre del Oro, or ‘Tower of Gold’, a 13th century Moorish watchtower and one of Seville’s most iconic monuments.
The flavour of Puerto de Indias Pure Black Edition Premium Gin is obtained from ingredients from the Andalusian springtime during its production process. Crystal clear in colour, the gin has a strong flavour of juniper and citrus, with notes of select ingredients such as jasmine and vanilla, as well as light touches of orange blossom. Its flavour is intense and bitter, with a well-rounded character provided by the juniper. The lime, grapefruit, orange and lemon peel give a very fresh touch to the finish.
Situated a few miles outside of Seville, the family-run distillery of Los Alcores de Carmona has been crafting fine spirits since 1880. In its picturesque rural location surrounded by meadows, the distillery is built on the ruins of an ancient Arabian mill and Roman thermal baths. Expertly marrying the past with the present, Puerto de Indias’ portfolio of gins are distilled on 150 year-old copper stills, which operate side by side with innovative modern production methods. Infused with natural ingredients and botanicals from the sun-drenched region of Seville, Spain, these aromatic gins fill the senses with the spirit of Andalucía. Paying homage to its heritage, Puerto de Indias takes its name from Seville’s port which came to prominence during the 1500s, a period when Spain began extensively trading with the recently-discovered New World. In a nod to its maritime roots, the gin’s unique bottle shape is inspired by the Torre del Oro, or ‘Tower of Gold’, a 13th century Moorish watchtower and one of Seville’s most iconic monuments.
It’s pale pink in colour. The aroma of strawberries is evident with sweet, junipery and fragrant. Reminiscent of strawberry ice cream. The strawberry ice cream doesn’t stop with the aroma. The palate is of strawberries and cream ice cream with a juniper wafer. A creamy mouthfeel with a sweet long finish of strawberries and a hint of liquorice. There isn’t much more to say about this gin. It is simple and uncomplicated….
Charles Tanqueray, the 20-year-old heir to three generations of Bedfordshire clergy, begins to realize his dream of producing a spirit elixir to rival the masterpieces of his distinguished ancestors. He chooses to abandon the family profession and establish a small distillery in the Bloomsbury district of London. Tanqueray are the paramount of premium spirits that together create the refreshing world of Tanqueray products, a place where perfection and craftsmanship maintain a history that reaches back 175 years. Using our distinctive and proprietary process to create unparalleled clarity and zest, these three spirits are the epitome of sophistication and taste.
Tanqueray Blackcurrant Royale is a gin made with French blackcurrants and subtle notes of vanilla to deliver a rich and fruity gin with subtle sweetness, balanced with the four classic London Dry botanicals. Made with French blackcurrants and subtle notes of vanilla, elevated with a black orchid inspired flavour. Gin botanicals with complex fruity and floral nose. Juicy ripe blackcurrant with subtle sweetness of vanilla and a floral finish.
Mar06
Belmont Farm Kopper Kettle Virginia Whiskey
Comments Off on Belmont Farm Kopper Kettle Virginia Whiskey
Chuck Miller is the owner and master distiller of Belmont Farm. A Buddy Ebsen look alike, he is tall and very outgoing. He started his distillery in 1988 when corn prices hit a low and he had too much on hand. Using his grandfather’s recipe, he started distilling his own moonshine. Chuck’s grandfather was a moonshiner back during prohibition, running moonshine into Washington, DC. While the grandfather’s moonshine was illegal, Chuck went through the long process of obtaining a license for his distillery and moonshine. Chuck is not an ordinary farmer. He has a degree in Aviation Engineering from the University of Maryland. He flew aircraft in Vietnam and later flew for Eastern Airlines. Once the airline hit hard times he started on the path to creating a distillery. Belmont Farm grows or sources, from nearby farms, all their own grain. According to Belmont Farm, at one time it was the only distillery that did that. The grinding and malting are done on site. The mash is fermented on site, cooked, distilled and then either bottled, barrelled or put into storage tanks.
The bouquet shows charred oak barrels, this is a rich, full flavored whiskey. The palate shows notes of cacao, vanilla and even caramel with a slight spice on the finish. Incredibly smooth aftertaste.
DRIVING around the picturesque Yarra Valley, you can’t help feeling immersed in the world of wine, with vineyards and cellar doors at every turn. It is one of Australia’s most historic wine regions with more than 160 years of grape-growing under its soil. But there is something amiss that would surely see the region’s forefathers turning in their graves, with two former local wine identities ditching the grapes and firing up a German still in a quest to make Australia’s premier gin. The emergence of craft spirits such as the Yarra Valley’s Four Pillars and The West Winds Gin from Western Australia are part of a revolution under way across the country as microbreweries and the occasional distillery spring up to put long-needed spice back into our local drinks of choice. For the team behind Four Pillars in the Yarra Valley, it was a lack of quality Australian tonic water that first piqued their interest. But over a couple of G&Ts, the tonic water project was ditched and a desire to craft Australia’s finest gin emerged. But it would take three years before the general public would get a chance to sample their wares. First the team needed a shed. As fate would have it, space opened up at Rob Dolan Wines in the Yarra Valley, which is a source of pure, high-quality water, an essential ingredient in gin production. The crew of winemakers on site was a bonus and made for a willing team of trained tasters to evaluate numerous trial batches. At the heart of any crafted gin is its still, which through its shape and composition determines the character of the spirit – particularly the swan’s neck that draws up the purified spirit vapours from the base of the still. In search of the right still, two of the three business partners, Cameron MacKenzie and Stuart Gregor, hit the road from Portland to Los Angeles, meeting and tasting with some of America’s top craft distillers. And time and again, it was the German-made CARL stills that triumphed. The only problem was, there are only a handful of these stills made every year and the Australians would have to wait. Unperturbed, they placed the order and headed back to Australia to refine their recipe.
After visiting Cobram Estate during olive harvest we realised olive oil could be a brilliant botanical alongside olive leaf. The aroma, flavour and texture of fresh olive is stunning, and we did a year of trials before finalising the recipe for this gin. The botanicals include a big base of juniper with a savoury overlay of coriander seed, rosemary, olive leaf, olive oil, bay leaf, lemon myrtle, macadamia, orris root, and fresh lemon and grapefruit. Fresh ingredients were vapour infused while the others macerated in the pot.
Arthur and Hilary Miller established the Scilly Spirit Distillery on St Mary’s Island in the enchanting archipelago of the Isles of Scilly, the most south westerly point of the UK. The inspiration for the recipe of the gin was a shipwreck in 1665 around Bishop Rock. The survivors were rescued by bold crewmen in pilot gig boats and part of the rich cargo was pepper from Java. Pepper is one of the seven main botanicals in this bold, vibrant Island Gin. The bottle also pays homage to this history, the shape representing the Bishop Rock Lighthouse while the colour aims to capture the distinctive, vibrant aqua green waters of the island’s waters. The carefully selected, ethically sourced botanicals (juniper, cassia bark, oris root, peppercorns, kaffir lime leaves, dried orange peel and fennel seeds) are steeped for 48 hours to ensure that flavours and oils infuse the spirit. Once the gin is created, it is rested for another two weeks to meld flavours and create a smooth versatile gin.
Island Gin has a great balance of juniper, cardamom, a hint of orange, lime leaf and a warm familiar notes of cassia. The palate is full and rounded, with soft citrus and juniper on the fore, followed by layers of fennel, a fruity peppery note and subtle spice. The savoury notes of pepper and cardamom are balanced by a touch of sweetness from the orange and fennel. The finish is well balanced and the subtle citrus notes encourage you take another sip.