Ableforth’s Bathtub Gin

Ableforth's Bathtub Gin is a wink at the American Prohibition years, when bootleggers steeped botanicals in whatever spirit they could find, often in a bathtub. The reference is in the method, not the quality: here, juniper, coriander, cardamom, cinnamon, clove and orange peel are cold-compounded directly into properly distilled pot-still spirit. Only thirty to sixty bottles come from each batch, wrapped in paper and sealed with wax in deliberate homage to the era.

The nose is intense and aromatic, juniper and warm spice over citrus and orange blossom. The palate is oily and full, earthy and resinous with pine, cardamom, cinnamon and orange peel. The finish is very long and distinctly spicy, all pepper, cinnamon and clove. That density gives real backbone to a Negroni, or build it into a Gin & Tonic with a twist of orange to play off the spice.