Our big sisterMAG »Gin Feature«

Our Big sisterMAG »Gin Feature«

For a couple of years now, the classic »Gin & Tonic« is no longer the only kid on the block. Drinks such as »Gin Basil Smash« or »London Mule« revived the liquor’s stuffy image. Yet, these are not the only drinks the juniper is perfectly mixable for.

We asked different Gin producers from all over Germany about what makes their gin special. Together with German World Class Bartender of 2018, Yvonne Rahm, we mixed some new signature drinks and added some new creations, as well.

Feeling Supersonic? There’s more than Gin & Tonic :)

Gin Gin!

»Viktoria Gin – Viktorian Coffee«

INGREDIENTS

• 8 cl Cold Brew (e.g. Good Spirits)
• 3 cl Viktoria Gin
• 1,5 cl Dry Orange Liqueur/ Triple Sec (e.g. Pierre Ferrand, Cointreau)
• 1 cl sugar syrup

Garnish

• 50-70ml cream
• a pinch of cardamom

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INSTRUCTIONS

1. Shake the cold brew, gin, cognac and sugar syrup with ice and pour it through the sieve into a shallow cup

For the cream

1. Shake the cream and cardamom extremely well or whip it using a soda syphon or hand mixer.
2. Slowly pour the cream

Viktoria Gin

Yvonne Rahm

World Class Bartender Germany 2018

Loves the sheer endless possibilities to combine flavours. Therefore, she loves to create drinks from essentially everything you place in front of her.

Currently Head Bartender at Bonvivant , she and her colleague work on the combination pf food and drinks. Additionally, her personal project dualities aspires to work towards reviving the Bar as a place for critical and exhilarated place for discourses on Art, Politics, as well as joy and gusto. Simply, a place for relaxed conversation and meeting of people.

»Niemand Dry Gin – True Colours«

INGREDIENTS

• Mash a 2x5cm piece of watermelon very well in a cocktail shaker
• 4,5 cl Niemand Gin
• 2 cl Belsazar Rosé Wermouth
• 1,5 cl lime juice
• 1,5 cl sugar syrup
• 1 bsp (bar spoon) rose water
• 1 cl aquafaba (chickpea juice)

Garnish

• Freshly grated nutmeg and dried rose leaves (can be found in the tea section).

INSTRUCTIONS

1. Tightly pack the ingredients and shake them cold over ice, then pour them through a very fine sieve (e.g. tea sieve) into a pre-chilled cocktail bowl.
2. Grate some fresh nutmeg over the top and decorate with a couple of rose leaves.

Cheers!

Niemand Dry Gin

• Industry: Spirits
• Headquarter: Hannover
• Founder: Sebastian Maria Otto, Torben Paradiek

Tell us a little bit about the brand and your gin? 

Nobody (»Niemand«) is like you. Wood meets flower. The premium handcraft gin foregoes the usual citrus note and captivates with its floral, soft note. Sandalwood, lavender and rosemary shape this gin and invite you on a dreamy stroll. The inspiration for the main ingredients — lavender and sandalwood — comes from the world of perfumery that also inspired the stylish glass bottle. Niemand Gin Dry is the first gin that uses a type of wood as a botanical – exceptional and unique. Behind it are the two creative businessmen Sebastian Maria Otto and Torben Paradiek who already made a name for themselves with »Gin Flight« – seasonings to refine gin and tonic. At the International Spirits Competitions 2017 in Los Angeles and New York, respectively, Niemand Dry Gin won two silver medals, also a gold medal in China. It won gold medals in Singapore in 2018 and in Japan in 2019 as well.

What is so special about your gin?

The recipe is unique! We left out the citrus note that is usually included and also put the juniper in the background. Our concept is: »Wood meets flower.« The main botanicals lavender, rosemary and sandalwood bring the flowery scent to the nose. Ginger and cinnamon provide for a slight spiciness in the finish. In all, we limited the selection to 10 botanicals. Apple, vanilla, pine nuts, coriander and juniper complement the package.

Which notes are especially important for the gin? 

Lavender and rosemary are important for the scent and the taste – sandalwood brings the elegance. It reduces the spiciness of the basic alcohol.

Who is responsible for the production and distillation of the gin? 

Niemand Dry Gin has been distilled in a small distillery in Hannover since 2015.

How is your distillation process different from the conventional way? 

It’s a classical London Dry procedure. The maceration comes first, then the distillation, then blending to 46%.

Where do you get your juniper? 

Heide, Germany.

What was the inspiration for the packaging? What is especially important about it for you? 

The two botanicals lavender and sandalwood are inspired by perfumes. That’s why we designed the bottle like a perfume flacon.

Gin and Tonic: a boring standard drink or an unrecognised genius? 

Somewhere in between. It’s so easy to mix with a lot of variety, thanks to the many gin and tonic brands. The sugar and the carbonic acid make opinions diverge.

Gin and Tonic with cucumber, lime or lemon?

Definitely an apple slice in our GT! And if you like the visual appearance, you can add a branch of rosemary.

Should we drink your gin pure? 

Our gin is very often drunk pure as an aperitif.

Is gin still in?

Yes! Gin is firmly established in the supermarket shelves and the back buffets of bars. Thanks to the wide range of flavours, there is something for everyone. Nowadays, the zeitgeist prefers less alcohol volume, »low ABV« in spirits and cocktails. That’s why we launched our Niemand liqueur with only 20% ABV in June 2019. The main notes — bergamot, cucumber and grapefruit — delight every palate.

Which gin cocktail recipe is your favorite? What is especially hip this summer?

For us, it’s still the Niemand Perfect-Serve: Gimlet with 6 cl Niemand Gin, 4 cl lemon juice and 2 cl sugar syrup.

»Humboldt Dry Gin – Adventurous Collins«

INGREDIENTS

• 4 cl Humboldt Dry Rye Gin
• 1 cl Spreewald Destillerie red currant liqueur
• 1 cl sugar syrup
• 2 cl lemon juice
• Soda

Garnish

• Lemon wedge.

INSTRUCTIONS

1. Pour gin, sugar syrup and lemon juice into a long drink glass with ice cubes, stir and top with soda.
2. Pour over the red currant liqueur.

Humboldt Dry Gin

• Industry: Spirits
• Headquarter: Berlin/Brandenburg
• Founder: Sebastian Brack, Steffen Lohr, Bastian Heuser

Tell us a little about the brand and the gin?

Humboldt Gin emerged in collaboration with the botanical garden and botanical museum Berlin-Lichterfelde and the curators of the exhibition »The brothers Humboldt« in the German Historical Museum. They had the idea of creating a gin in honour of Alexander von Humboldt and on the occasion of his 250th birthday. The gin is based on the botanicals that Alexander von Humboldt archived and described for Europe for the first time. We liked the idea so much that we soon abandoned our principle: »We don’t make gin.«!

What is so special about your gin? 

I think its history and its inspiration make it special. We were allowed to roam through the archive of the botanical museum with the botanists and choose from over 3,000 plant samples the great Alexander von Humboldt himself picked on his trips to South America. For the gin, we chose seven, partly quite exotic, botanicals that define the character of the gin:

• Angostura bark & guaran seeds from the Orinoco River
• Congona (cinnamon pepper), cinchona bark and blue sage from the Andes
• Pimento from the Caribbean Islands
• Epazote (Mexican-tea) from Mexico

Which notes are especially important for the gin? 

We created a classical gin recipe, which was then refined with the seven lead botanicals. This way, a gin emerged that appears floral and fresh as well as aromatic and powerful, thanks to its rye base.

Who is responsible for the production and distillation of the gin?

My partner, Steffen Lohr, is our »master distiller«.

How is your distillation process different from the conventional way?

We distil the gin after a short maceration of the botanicals in rye distillate in our hybrid pot stills, which we also use to distil our rye whiskey.

Where do you get your juniper?

From the specialist trade! It might not have been harvested at full moon by virgins, but it’s organic.

What was the inspiration for the packaging? What is especially important about it for you? 

My other business partner, Sebastian Brack, is responsible for the packaging. The whole thing was created in collaboration with the graphic studio Editienne. The bottle is plain and low-key which makes it all the more noble. Surely, Alexander von Humboldt was like that as well!

Gin and Tonic: a boring standard or an unrecognised genius?

Gin and tonic always works. I love it!

Gin and tonic with cucumber, lime or lemon? 

Humboldt gin and tonic with grapefruit or orange, I personally, however, love my gin and tonic without any vegetables.

Should we drink your gin pure?

Everybody does what they like most. I’m not into dogmas.

Is gin still in?

Apparently so because the whole world still talks about it and buys gin like crazy. We will see in the next two to three years how much growth is still possible. I think that the limit will be reached then.

Which gin cocktail recipe is your favourite? What is especially hip this summer?

My absolute favourite among the gin drinks is the Last Word. You shake gin, Chartreuse Verte, Maraschino and lime juice in equal shares on ice and pour it in a precooled Coupette glass. A splendidly refreshing and also complex drink!

»Wonderleaf – a Wonderleaf a day«

INGREDIENTS

• 6 cl Wonderleaf
• ¹/₄ green apple
• 2 cl lavender honey
• 3 cl lemon juice
• 2 cl egg white

Garnish (optional)

• A slice of apple.

INSTRUCTIONS

1. Lightly crush the apple in a shaker using a mortar.
2. Add the other ingredients and shake them over ice.
3. Pour through the sieve into a tumbler with cubed ice.

»Siegfried Rheinland Dry Gin – Awesome Fizz«

INGREDIENTS

• 3 cl Siegfried Rheinland Dry Gin
• 1,5 cl Raspberry Schnaps (e.g. by Schladerer)
• 3 cl lemon juice, freshly pressed
• 2 cl sugar syrup
• 8 cl Soda

Garnish

• Lemon slices.

INSTRUCTIONS

1. Shake raspberry schnaps, gin, lemon juice and sugar over ice, pour into a long drink glass, top with soda.

Siegfried Rheinland Dry Gin

• Industry: Spirits
• Headquarter: Bonn
• Founder: Raphael Vollmar, Gerald Koenen

Tell us a little bit about the brand and the gin? 

With its numerous top accolades at worldwide competitions, Siegfried Rheinland Dry Gin is one of the best gins on the planet. It’s distilled in small batches with traditional craftsmanship, exquisite ingredients as well as tranquillity, patience and a lot of attention to detail.

What is so special about your gin?

Big name, a lot behind it: In the Nibelungen saga, the linden tree played an important role when a linden leaf changed the life of the heroic dragon killer Siegfried permanently. In this gin, the linden tree also makes the difference. Eighteen botanicals, the linden blossom being one of them, create the balance in our Siegfried Rheinland Dry Gin. A special flavour profile emerges which made it the highest-rated gin of the world in blind tastings. It’s not the packaging that distinguishes us but the content. You can find an overview of our awards here.

Which notes are especially important for the gin?

The linden blossom is the lead botanical and not only creates the symbiotic connection between the brand and the distillate but provides the gin with its distinctive flavour profile.

Who is responsible for the production and the distillation of the gin? 

The Rheinland Distillers GmbH is responsible for the production and the distillation.

How is your distillation process different from the conventional way?

The Siegfried Rheinland Dry Gin is distilled conventionally, thus traditionally. However, it’s getting »wild« with our non-alcoholic version Wonderleaf. We have taken completely new paths here and taken the spirit further.

We worked a long time to achieve the optimal extraction of the aromas. We can’t go into details, but it generally applies that we distil the botanicals classically but more potently than for gin. Of course, we only use natural botanicals. We categorically reject artificial flavours..

Where do you get your juniper?

We always use the best quality possible. We purchase where we find the highest quality.

What was the inspiration for the packaging? What is escpecially important about it for you?

Before we made the name SIEGFRIED respectable again, we thought about how we could tone down this outmoded, massive name in a skilful way. That’s why we opted for the clear glass apothecary bottle.

Our approach is edgy and clean – naturally, we didn’t follow the trend with that. Our company doesn’t have a heritage and doesn’t pretend to have one. We also waive references to the Nibelungen saga, dragons and swords. It’s important for us that WE like our packaging. We are all the more happy that »the others« like it too – which was confirmed by the German Design Award 2018 in the packaging category.

Gin and tonic: a boring standard drink or an unrecognised genius?

Gin and tonic is anything but underestimated. Instead, it’s one of the most popular long drinks of the Germans. And with Wonderleaf, there is an alcohol-free alternative now that significantly increases the enjoyment factor for those who don’t want or mustn’t drink alcohol

Gin and tonic with cucumber, lime or lemon? 

We always say: Anything goes! However, the garnish is not everything because the quality of a long drink starts with the preparation. Next to high-quality products, it’s important to use good ice.

Should we drink your gin pure?

It’s very important to know that our Siegfried Rheinland Dry Gin is in the high-end sector of crafted spirits. In order to evaluate the fine taste nuances and the mature interplay of aromas, you should taste every (alcoholic) gin at room temperature and pure to discover the differences.

Is gin still in?

Our answer: Of course, gin is still in! All first movers, pleasure nerds and people interested in gin opened the door and paved the way for us to encounter »exotic products« in more and more places. They also made possible that the variety of the gin world evolves in the future.

Gin is far from out because now, the spirit gradually reaches the mainstream. Nevertheless, we think that the time of the big brands and the domination of the market by single brands is over. This is because the consumers want this variety and there are different tastes. Beyond that, we discovered another need of the consumers and launched a non-alcoholic version named Wonderleaf within our core brand – as the only spirit producer to date.

Which gin cocktail recipe is your favourite? What is especially hip this summer?

It’s almost impossible to answer this question briefly and in only one sentence since our very different moods lead to the answer. There is a clear trend towards conscious enjoyment and a reduction of alcohol. That’s why in summer, light drinks play a central role.