Issue link: http://digital.copcomm.com/i/148134
Gin &Agave and other spirits of note The Botanist Islay Dry Gin The Botanist is small batch artisanal gin that at the outset resembles other classic gins in its use of aromatics and botanicals, but then things get quite a bit more complex. To the "original nine" are added no fewer than 22 more botanicals, gathered in the wild by hand from the hills, peat bogs and shores of the southernmost island of Scotland's Inner Hebrides. The complexity doesn't stop there: Distillation takes place extremely slowly in a pot still nicknamed Ugly Betty, who apparently won't be rushed. Head Distiller Jim McEwan said he had to "learn a new dance" with Betty, but the result is a complex, floral gin of outstanding character. Tesseron Cognac Tesseron is a new luxury cognac from the Tesseron family, which holds one of the greatest collections of aged cognac reserves in the world. They started to sell these aged cognacs in 2003. The family is unique in that they own vineyard land, operate a distillery and produce cognacs only XO and above in age. As representative Todd Coffin told us, they like to say that "Tesseron cognac begins when other cognacs finish." Only very small quantities are made, only by artisanal methods, right down to putting the label on the bottle by hand. Chloe Stanzione represented The Botanist Islay Dry Gin. 16 gin and agave • august 2013