13 January 2014

Dry Ginuary

I couldn't believe it when I found out there was such a thing as a Ginvent calendar — an advent calendar with a tiny bottle of gin behind each window — and this year, I was lucky enough to be given one as a birthday-Christmas combo present. As I only received it in the middle of December and as I'm not exactly the gin-a-day type, I only broke into the calendar in the new year. I'm friends with a number of gin buffs, so I decided to share the love and tempt them away from any dry January notions with a Dry Ginuary party on Saturday night.


I downloaded the tasting notes from the Gin Foundry website, and let my friends pick numbers from 1 to 24, inviting them to try to discern the featured botanicals in each gin. No points for juniper and citrus, though!


The packaging of the drams is adorable: tiny bottles with an aged, Courier-font label and a faux sealing wax lid.


I still have a few bottles left, but we worked our way through a fair number before switching back to my local favourite, Jensen's Bermondsey Gin. Of the gins I sampled, I think my favourites were probably the Dorothy Parker Gin (which I tried at Gin Palace in New York in October), the Geranium Gin (I don't normally go for floral notes, but this was fresh and light) and the Cream Gin, which was subtly sweet and delicious. Also, although it's a little different for the gins I normally go for, the Navy-Strength Bathtub Gin had a really interesting taste — very citrusy and, at 57% abv, one hell of a kick.


If you're a gin fan or would like to be, I'd recommend the Ginvent calendar — and you don't need to wait until Advent, of course! It's convinced me to pick up a bottle of Dorothy Parker Gin when I'm next in New York and to continue to seek out interesting bars that have more to offer than Gordon's and Tanqueray!


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