Issue link: https://digital.copcomm.com/i/931490
Our Annual Gin-uary Report 80 / the tasting panel / january/february 2018 From the Kitchen: ROXOR GIN James Beard–awarded chef and Ph.D. Robert Del Grande crafted the recipe for this modern, balanced, and approachable Texas gin, which can be found in a distinctive decanter- quality skyline bottle with its pal- indrome name: "on the ROX, shaken, OR stirred." ROXOR Artisan Gin (SRP $30) features 12 botanicals, including fresh citrus zest, hibiscus flowers, cocoa nibs, and pecans. "Soft steeping and distilling" results in a gin that leads with perfume notes while maintaining a complexity that's intrigu- ingly pleasant at 90 proof. NEW ARTISAN SPIRITS, INC. For the Connoisseur: NOLET'S SILVER DRY GIN Built in 1691, the family-owned Nolet Distillery in Schiedam, Holland, is run by tenth-generation distillery owner Carolus Sr. and his sons Carl Jr. and Bob. The trio created NOLET'S Finest Gins as a celebration of their family's heritage and challenged themselves to use off-the-beaten-path ingredients and botanicals; NOLET'S Silver Dry Gin (SRP $50) features Turkish rose, peach, and raspberry. Each botanical used is individually macerated and then distilled before being added to the neutral grain spirit. NOLET'S is a perfect gin for the base of a cocktail: You can taste the passion and tradition that goes into every sip of this fine expression. Created with the professional bartender in mind, Fords Gin (SRP $28) took a chef-like approach in formulating its brand by looking at the fla- vors found in the ingredients of classic cocktails. Directly pairing those flavors with botanicals took the company toward conceiving a London Dry–style gin, and Co-Founder and industry veteran Simon Ford collaborated with eighth-generation Master Distiller Charles Maxwell to launch the spirit in 2012. "Gin is the quintessential spirit for cocktails, and we make Fords Gin for that purpose," says Ford. "Martinis, Gin and Tonics, Negronis, Tom Collinses, Gimlets, and so on—it's gin's relationship to cocktails that makes it such a great category." The gin begins with a neutral base of English wheat and botanicals sourced from the venerable Joseph Flach & Sons, the 125-year-old London-based importing company. It features the traditional founda- tion of juniper and coriander seed—hailing from Italy and Romania, respectively—and balances those with seven other botanicals: lemon peel from Spain, bitter orange peel from Morocco and Haiti, grape- fruit peel from Turkey, angelica root from Poland, cassia bark from India, jasmine from China, and orris root from Italy and Morocco. Maxwell steeps these botanicals for 15 hours and distills the gin in 500-liter stills to create a London Dry gin perfectly suited for any gin-inspired cocktail. THE 86 CO. Beard–awarded Ph.D. Robert Grande crafted for this balanced, and approachable Texas gin, be found in distinctive bottle pal- name: ROX, OR stirred." Artisan Gin features 12 botanicals, including citrus zest, hibiscus flowers, cocoa nibs, A Worldly Expression: FORDS GIN