Dry Gin XII
Distilleries et Domaines de Provence emerged in 1974 out of the Distillerie de Lure, which was founded in 1898 at Forcalquier in Provence. It is perhaps best known for its range of absinthes, liqueurs, and Rinquinquin, a rather tasty peach wine. Given its locale and the distillery’s use of botanicals in its other products, it is not surprising that they have ventured into the world of the ginaissance. Dry Gin XII, the fourth gin I picked up on my recent visit to Constantine Stores, the home of Drinkfinder UK, is the result and it is quite distinctive.
The clue to what is going on is in the name, the Roman numerals indicating that there are twelve botanicals in the mix. The botanicals are actually named on the front of the bottle, a welcome and refreshing touch of openness from the distillers. As is right and proper for a product that has come from the south of France, their names are in French. Drinking authentic non-British gins has the added benefit of allowing you to polish up your rusty language skills and a mix of half-forgotten schoolboy French and an on-line translator allowed me to identify them as juniper, coriander, sweet almond, thyme, angelica, grains of paradise, iris, cardamom, basil, rosemary, eucalyptus, and mint.
This is a gin that is rooted in the terroir of the Haute-Provence and draws its inspiration from the aromas that abound in the shrubby garrigue. On the nose it is redolent of herbs, principally basil and rosemary with a hint of pine. In the glass the spirit is clear but offers an immediate surprise. While the juniper is detectible, it is very much in the background, offering a base for the cooler flavours and textures of the floral and herbal elements to strut their stuff. Like a long-awaited bloom on a flower, it is gone almost as soon as it arrives with the aftertaste an initial burst of sweet, cool eucalyptus followed by a moreish spicy finish.
With an ABV of 42% it has some punch, but rather than hitting the toper with a slug of juniper, it bathes them in the deceptively strong and distinctively tasty herbs and flowers of the Provence. In a blind tasting, it might be difficult to recogniser that it is a gin, so toned down is the juniper. My strong preference is for a juniper forward gin and so I was a tad disappointed with this one. I could appreciate the skill that went into developing this complex gin and it struck me as a very pleasant, refreshing contemporary gin that showcased the region it came from, perfect for a warm summer’s evening. For that alone it is worth a look.
The bottle design is elegantly French, using pale blue frosted glass. Circular, with rounded shoulders, and a moderately sized neck which leads to a white glass stopper. The twelve botanicals are listed on the front, six above and six below the name of the gin and the botanicals are illustrated in a circle around the front of the bottle. Like the gin itself, it is chic, confident, cool, yet in an understated way.
Until the next time, cheers!
