Sipsmith London Dry Gin

Rating: 8/23 N: Alcohol, faintly nutty (hazelnut, but stale), a tad spiced even, some more traditional gin flavors hidden underneath (including that note of juniper). P: Fairly sweet, but also nutty and... fishy? This isn't a briny, fresh fishiness: it's a sulfuric rotting one. Pretty subdued and less herbal, fruity, and punchy than most gins. I think there might be a stale coriander flavor causing that particular stale nut profile. This is certainly not the coriander that reminds me of chamomile when I drink Monkey 47. Side by side with Plymouth, I can verify that this is not your typical gin profile. There's plenty of spice and heat, but there's suprirsingly little in the way of botanicals standing out here. Side by side, I find Plymouth to be more complex and appealing. This is more kind of stale and off. F: Fishy and nutty, with some sweetness and staleness. A bit of a spicy bite still. Maybe hints of juniper. Possibly faint hints of baking spices. - Conclusion - I'm seriously regretting buying a bottle of this. What even is this? I'm not sure I would have guessed gin just tasting it. It's odd but fine - except for that appalling fishiness. Ick! If it weren't for that fishiness, this would strike me as a sort of interesting variation on Pacific Voyager crossed with Empress. Neither Voyager nor Empress have that fishiness though, so that's a fairly unique problem with this particular gin. And Frangelico doesn't have it either. For shame. There are still some good flavors here, so the fishiness doesn't bring this all of the way down to a 6, but it certainly keeps it from being higher than a 10. I'm going to give it an 8.

I tasted this London Dry Gin neat at 41.6%abv, with a drop of water, and in a gin & tonic in the morning. In the glass, this gin appears very neutral-coloured and with thin viscosity. Juniper bark is first and foremost on the nose with orange peel appearing afterwards. The taste is also juniper- and citrus-forward but with a complex burst of spices and flavours slipping by in every direction as well. There is a spicy heat present which dissipates with a drop of water, allowing the juniper to explode and the side-stage flavours to mingle with it. This is a delight to sip neat and performs exceptionally well in a cocktail as well. I would prefer a more enticing mouthfeel in a neat gin, but that is the only demerit that comes to mind in this very complex spirit. Excellent!

A balanced, London Dry Gin by Sipsmith in Hammersmith, London, England made with English Barley & 10 carefully selected botanicals then blended with pure water of Lydwell spring; then distilled in a traditional copper pot still. It has an aromatic birth with notes of honey, ripe fruits, a hint of yeast, nuts, chocolate & grape jam; while a dry life adds notes of juniper, lemon tart, orange marmalade & fresh lemon zest; that led to a balanced death of medium length with a hint of lemon tart & spicy juniper. April / June 2020 / April 2021

Lemon and Oil: This tastes straight up like lemon rind to me. I searched for more flavor and I got some oil in there (which was not good). You can get some juniper and typical gin flavors in there as well, but the lemon dominates. Where I'm from, we have cheap vodka that comes in plastic bottles. I'm certain that they flavor those vodkas with citrus to mask the cheapness. This honestly reminds me of a slightly higher class version of that. To me, this gin aint worth the hype.

I like this gin, as it’s less floral and citrusy. Very spicy with some heat, strong juniper, and definitely not for those who like gins that have a lot of other botanicals going on. The finish is bitter, but not terribly so, and it gives a nice tang to a G+T, I think. The character of this gin is limited, in that you can’t point to a particular unique botanical (floral, tea, citrus, etc.) being at the forefront, but in certain cases this is just what you want.

Straight juniper on the nose. Very thin body. The alcohol stingd the lips, but not the tongue. Some light floral on the tongue, but mostly it's straightforward in it's juniper flavors. Very clean finish. The pine opens up with a little water. Over ice, the spirit becomes even brighter with a hint of citrus. Overall it fades when adding tonic, but overall it's definitely a good dry gin to make cocktails with or sip on.