Geranium 55% Overproof Gin (700ml)

Since first importing it to Australia several years ago, "Geranium" has established a steady following. This release celebrates the fifth anniversary of the brand. Bottled at 55% ABV, it's intended to stand out in cocktails and mixed drinks. It employs the same 10 botanicals as the original version, however it's made using 20% less geranium to prevent it from becoming too perfumed at the higher alcoholic strength.

Part time bartender, Jay Hepburn gives a concise and enthusiastic introduction to Geranium Gin, “...the creation of Henrik Hammer, an accredited gin judge who had been pondering the use of geranium in gin for years, knowing that it is regularly combined with ingredients like juniper and angelica in the therapeutic world. Together with his chemist father they chemically analysed geranium and found that the significant oils were those like geraniol formate, rose oxide and citronelol which are present in most fruits, vegetables and spices – therefore theoretically making it a good mixer. The challenge was how to get the oils out of the geranium and in to the gin, but luckily Henrik’s father had worked with essential oils for the perfume and food industry in decades."

Using a small 5 litre still they set about experimenting with using geranium in the botanical mix. Having found the best ways to process and distill the geranium they turned to the Langley Distillery in Birmingham, England, who produce a number of famous gins including Martin Miller’s, to fine tune the recipe for full scale production. The final product is distilled using pure wheat grain alcohol and ten botanicals including juniper, geranium (which is harvested from Denmark and used fresh), lemon, coriander, cassia, orris root, angelica and liquorice which are steeped for 48 hours prior to distillation.