Where Is Hendrick’s Gin Made

Bombay Sapphire London Dry Gin

If you look at the list of botanicals in Bombay Sapphire you will notice a few differences from other London dry gins. Grains of paradise, almond, and cubeb berries are not your average gin ingredients and they help this bottle stand apart from the crowd.

Distilled in Cheshire, England, Bombay Sapphires full list of vapor-infused botanicals include juniper, almond, grains of paradise, lemon peel, licorice, orris root, angelica, coriander, cassia bark, and cubeb berries. Its old meets new with this gin. While the brand is relatively young, having launched in 1987, the beautiful array is based on a recipe from 1761.

You cannot miss Bombay Sapphire on the liquor shelf. Its blue bottle has an allure that will catch your eye, though the gin itself is not bluelook to Magellan Gin for that.

This gin is also bottled at 47 percent ABV , so it will stand up to your dry martinis as well as fruity gimlets and the Floradora. Its a staple that you can rely on and a good premium gin to keep in stock.

The Untold Truth Of Hendrick’s Gin

Hendrick’s Gin, launched in 1999 in Scotland, is a premier gin innovation. With a unique advertising style and flavor combination , it’s a popular drink for gin and gin-and-tonic enthusiasts. Even the famous Katz’s Delicatessen in New York City became involved with Hendrick’s Gin around, of all things, a pickle campaign. There’s even a … Gin Palace? And that’s not even scratching the surface of many other truths waiting to be told. Like, there’s a gaming chaise that’s priced at a few thousand dollars. There’s even a recipe for a drink in honor of the chair! If you think you know Hendrick’s Gin, there’s probably a lot more hidden beneath the surface that you can learn and discover about this fascinating brand and drink. Read on to see what else you can learn about the curious brand that is Hendrick’s Gin.

Monkey 47 Distillers Cut 2021

Monkey 47 is already an interesting gin, made at a distillery in Germanys Black Forest from a blend of 47 botanicals. But each year the distillery also releases its Distillers Cut, a riff on the core expression, and the latest from 2021 is worth checking out. The 48th ingredient for this release is scarlet monarda, a beautiful red flower. The resulting spirit is fragrant, floral, and has just a hint of spice, making this an interesting gin to sample.

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The Gin Palace Is Where The Special Gin Flavors Are Created

The Gin Palace is as regal and fantastical as the name. Gracie tells ABC Fine Wine & Spirits that “The Hendrick’s Gin Palace is my playground, filled with all my favorite things. You follow a path lined with wildflowers and enter the walled garden through this beautiful old door. If you are lucky enough, I’ll be waiting to let you in. The Hendrick’s Gin Palace was built in the image of an old Victorian Palm House. It has this incredible domed glass ceiling and is flanked by my beloved hothouses, which is where I tend to all manners of weird and wonderful botanicals and flora from around the world.”

Who wouldn’t want to take a tour of this lovely gin temple? If you’re looking for a bit of relaxation, however, that might be the opposite of what you would find. Gracie explains how there’s a lot to do on any given day at the Gin Palace, “…from testing and analysing our botanical samples to ensure they are up to our pretty exacting standards, to tasting the distillates to ensure our quality standards. Playing in the lab with different distillates and essences is my favorite part of the day and I find tending to the botanicals in the hothouses a good way to relax and unwind.” While there is certainly work to be done, who wouldn’t want to spend the day playing in the lab with different flavors? Testing botanical samples? Sign us up!

Meet Lesley Gracie: Master Distiller For Hendrick’s Gin & Leader In Modern Gin Innovation

Its 2020, and Gin & Tonics have once again proven themselves as a faithful cocktail. They are light and fresh, a truly wonderful way to keep the calories downbut not too long ago, gin was a faltering spirit. Lesley Gracie, Master Distiller of Hendricks Gin, played a massive role in redeeming this current, fan-favorite spirit. In 1999, Charles Gordon, the late president of Hendricks, enlisted Gracie in creating a new and revolutionary gin that would later change the style of gin for the future. Hendricks focuses on flavor and quality rather than style causing it to stray from the typical London Dry method of creation. Read our full interview with Gracie to learn about the beautiful, new playground that is Gin Palace, along with Gracies Cabinet of Curiosities. Dive into the details that show the growth and the development of a self-coined unusual company where innovation is the true priority.

Can you describe the Gin Palace?

The Hendricks Gin Palace is my playground, filled with all my favorite things. You follow a path lined with wildflowers and enter the walled garden through this beautiful old door. If you are lucky enough, Ill be waiting to let you in. The Hendricks Gin Palace was built in the image of an old Victorian Palm House. It has this incredible domed glass ceiling and is flanked by my beloved hothouses, which is where I tend to all manners of weird and wonderful botanicals and flora from around the world.

What does your typical day look like?

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Hendricks Gin Vs The Competition

Tanqueray 10s similarity with the original Hendricks lies in that there is a distinct tinge of flowers in the palate and finish.

But that is all the two spirits have in common.

Tanqueray 10s clean, crisp balance in its blend makes it a preferred choice over Hendricks, especially when turning the gin as a primary building block for a martini. For a gin-and-tonic, though, they are neck-and-neck in terms of being the gin of choice and going down to the makers personal choice.

Bathtub Gin is like Hendricks, in that their exterior presentations remind one of a Queen Victoria-era apothecary.

Bathtub Gin is packaged with brown paper, string and wax, and the bottle lettering has fonts that are dead ringers for late 1800s English medicine peddlers.

However, the cinnamon and cardamom in the gin can be overpowering for some palates. In contrast, Hendricks rose petals-and-cucumber infusion doesnt try to compete with the juniper base mix in the initial tasting.

Even in its starter form, Plymouth English Gin manages to subdue the juniper base yet tries to make the mixed botanicals including coriander, orange, lemon, green cardamom, angelica root and orris root share center stage in the drinkers mouth. As a result, the taste is more of the classic London dry gin.

Hendricks tries to do the same thing with its botanical blend, but the rose-and-cucumber starter taste could be a turnoff, for the gin taste purist looking for a predominantly juniper blast on the mouth.

Hendricks Gin Palace Equipment And Distillation Process

Hendricks Gin Palace features six stills, with three copper stills installed inside the central stillhouse. Four Bennett stills, including one antique copper pot still from 1860 and three of its replicas are installed in the facility. In addition, two Carter-Head stills, one of which was made in 1948, and another replica are installed.

Hendricks gin was created by William Grant & Sons master distiller Lesley Gracie. It is infused with rose petals and cucumber supported by 11 botanicals, including angelica root, coriander seeds, elderflower, chamomile and yarrow.

The gin is distilled by combining spirits from two different stills, Carter-Head and Bennett. The botanicals seep into the spirit stored in the Bennett overnight before distillation forming a complex liquid.

The botanicals are steamed in a basket atop Carter-Head giving the effect of a botanical steam bath to the spirit. The process crafts 500l of gin at a time, allowing for greater control of the flavours.

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Because No Other Gin Is Made Like Hendricks

HENDRICKS GIN is distilled in not one but two utterly dissimilar sorts of still. The two leaders of this particular ensemble of stills are the Bennett, an antique copper pot dating right back to 1860, and the Carter-Head, hailing from 1948 .

The Bennett steeps the botanicals in spirit overnight prior to distillation resulting in a rich, complex liquid. Whereas the Carter-Head gently steams the botanicals in a basket atop its lofty neck, so influence is imparted upon the spirit in something akin to a botanical steam bath. This yields a lighter, more delicate spirit.

The harmonious combination of the Bennett and Carter-Head stills create an unusually smooth gin like no other that has the required character and balance of subtle flavours.

How Did You Get Into Being An Evangelist Or Alcohol Brand Ambassador

My interest in craft spirits began during my final year in university. I spent a good amount of time writing my thesis in a bar and eavesdropping on conversations that the bartenders were having. I soon caught on to the fact that almost every cocktail that was served and every bottle on the back shelf had its own unique story attached to it.

At that point I was majoring in English Literature and taking a minor in Creative Writing so naturally stories and storytelling were things that drew me in like a moth to a flame. Coupled with my existing interest in food and flavour discovery, delving into the realm of spirits was essentially inevitable.

I decided to properly pursue this combined fascination of stories and spirits by starting my first full-time job out of university at a cocktail bar called 28 HongKong Street back in 2015. Across the 3.5 years that I spent working at 28HKS Id gotten to know the various brand ambassadors from William Grant & Sons as they would come in for cocktails or to share the stories behind the spirits that I now get to work around every day.

When I heard that the role for the Hendricks brand ambassador had opened up I thought that perhaps Id fit the bill. Love for all things odd and peculiar? Check. Waxes lyrical about spirits all day? Check. Likes cucumbers? Check.

So I spoke to one of the other ambassadors and the next thing you know, here I am, three years in and still joyfully spreading the gospel of gin and cucumbers.

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It Takes Two Different Stills To Give Hendricks Its Unique Flavor

Hendricks uses two stills to make its gin. The Bennet is a traditional copper pot variety that can be found at many distilleries. The second is a rare Carterhead still from 1948 , which uses a copper basket to hold botanicals during distillation. Combining the two techniques gives the brand its smooth, subtle distinction.

drop!

The Magic Of The Sea Expressed In A Gin

HENDRICKS NEPTUNIA GIN adds another wave of flavour with an enticing chorus of deeply refreshing coastal botanicals and combines a smooth, bright citrus finish with a deliciously distant sea breeze. Owing to this inclusion of coastal botanicals we have partnered with PROJECT SEAGRASS, allowing us to give back to our divine inspiration, Mother Ocean.

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About Hendricks Lunar Gin

Hendricks Lunar Gin is a small-batch, limited release gin that offers a smooth and polished finish. It has a strong floral essence, offering a delicate balance of warm baked spices, and is finished with a hint of citrus. It is best enjoyed during casual nights at home and is a curious companion for sundowners and starry nights with friends.

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How Henricks Gin Is Made

To make their gin, Hendricks used, what was at the time, an unusual process. And its a tale of two different types of still a Bennett copper pot still which dates back to 1860, and a Carter-Head still which was made in 1948 and is one of only a handful that were made.

The Bennet provides the traditional steep/boil method of distillation. The 11 botanicals in Hendricks Gin are macerated overnight in the pot prior to distillation.

The same 11 botanicals are added to the Carter-Head, albeit in a different ratio. The botanicals in this still are placed in a basket above the spirit, allowing for the vapours to pass through, imparting the flavour.

Each process results in an entirely different gin. The Bennet is richer in flavour with more depth, while the Carter-Head is lighter in character. The two liquids are then blended together before being infused with rose and cucumber, bringing together the flavours behind David Stewarts inspired idea.

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Hendricks And Its Place In The Gin World

We have seen how gin production went from those few big names dominating the gin world, seemingly on every bar shelf anywhere, to the emergence of smaller, quality-orientated makers to an extraordinary worldwide explosion of craft distillers. It seems that every day new gins emerge while others disappear, never to be heard from again.

The UK went from one in five distilleries producing a gin to one in five not producing a gin a decade later. In 2019, 83 million bottles of gin were sold there. At that stage, I believe the population was 65 million people, give or take. Take out the kids, teetotalers, and others who would not be buying gin, and that still leaves a lot of gin for fans of the drink.

For me, Hendricks was the bridge between those major names and the craft flood, although as Hendricks is made at the William Grant distillery perhaps craft is a slight embellishment.

A Scottish gin made with cucumber? It made no sense to me at the time, but it tasted great and worked wonderfully with a range of cocktails, including the iconic martini. I have no doubt that the use of cucumbers, along with other botanicals, opened the eyes, and minds, of many small distillers and led to unprecedented experimentation.

Hendricks botanicals

If Hendricks has a problem, it might simply be that these days it gets lost in the endless parade of new gins or that some may feel it is old-fashioned. Strange days indeed.

How Is Hendricks Gin Made

Hendricks Gin is a uniquely crafted gin thats distilled twice in two very different stills. The amalgamation of these two very different styles sets Hendricks Gin apart.

The Bennett still, dating back to 1860, steeps the botanicals in spirit before the distillation process. Next, the Carter head still, dating back to 1948, steams the herbs in a basket to create a more delicate spirit.

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Tanqueray London Dry Gin

There is a beautiful gin inside this distinct green bottle with its red wax seal. Tanquerays crisp, dry style is the benchmark for a London dry gin without any citrus in the botanicals. It is a standard to which all other gins are compared and contrasted and also sells for a reasonable price.

Tanqueray London Dry Gin is bottled at a slightly higher strength than most gin, which makes the flavor profile beautifully bold. Depending on the market its sold in, youll find it bottled from 43.1 percent to 47.3 percent ABV . You can mix this gin into any cocktail and it wont get lost. It is the perfect choice for mixing a balanced drink.

Distilled since the 1870s, Tanqueray is now produced at Camron Bridge in Edinburgh, Scotland, one of Europes largest distilleries. Whats most amazing is that this four times distilled gin uses just four botanicals: juniper, coriander seed, angelica root, and licorice.

Hendricks Gin Palace Location

Located in the village of Girvan, Hendricks Gin Palace is situated inside William Grant & Sons existing site on the Ayrshire coast, overlooking the volcanic island of Ailsa Craig.

The site includes the Girvan distillery, as well as the new Ailsa Bay malt distillery and a product development laboratory.

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The Hendricks Gin Story

The world-famous Hendricks Gin was the brainchild of the William Grant family, a renowned Scotch whisky distiller. Back in 1966, Charles Gordon the great-grandson of William Grant went to an auction and acquired an 1860 Bennet Still and a 1943 rare Carter-Head still.

He had these stills restored but it was another 33 years before he worked out what on earth he was going to do with them. In 1989 he tasked Lesley Gracie to invent an elixir which used both stills.

Ten years on they created a liquid which used both stills, through a production process which is entirely unique to Hendricks. This highly unusual process sees the distillate from both stills combined and blended with rose and cucumber to create a gin that is truly like no other.

Every drop of Hendricks is produced under the instructions of master distiller, Miss Lesley Gracie at their Girvan distillery on the South Ayrshire coast.

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Common Hendricks Gin Prices List

The original Hendricks Gin carries a juniper berry foundation, with the aforementioned rose and cucumber infusion very much present in the nose and finish.

The classic Scottish gin roots, however, are quite dominant in the palate, but with a dint of yarrow and black pepper in the blend. This is a reflection of the background of Hendricks Gin master distiller Lesley Gracie, who brewed up various teas from botanical concoctions as a wee Scottish lass, and pushed those myriad plant-and-tree mixes into Hendricks. As such, the gin can be a good foundation for a gin over ice with tonic water , or the traditional gin-and-tonic.

Hendricks Gin Orbium is a limited version of the original, but it has strong indicators of quinine, wormwood and blue lotus blossom.

The result is that the rather bitter quinine and wormwood rudely wake up your tongue, but after some time the hints of mint, pepper, citrus, cucumber, rose petals and juniper arrive and greet you warmly. It works nicely with a club soda or tonic , but the initial bitterness thrust into your mouth is an acquired taste.

Given that quinine is used as a solution for malaria , the potential for Hendricks Gin Orbium as a medicine cabinet resident may soon be a reality.

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