Angel 'Gin from Heaven'

Two decades of music sit behind this bottle. Sergio and Nelson Rosado of the duo Anjos launched Angel in 2019 to mark twenty years of it, and the gin itself is a Portuguese London DryLondon DryA style, not a place of origin: every flavour comes from distilling natural botanicals. After distillation only water and a trace of sugar may be added, with no flavouring or colouring.GlossarySee London Dry gins built from eleven botanicals at 40% ABV, with coriander seeds from the Alentejo and carob from the Algarve giving the recipe its geography.

Citrus · Spicy · Herbal

Carob is the ingredient that separates this bottle from other London Dry gins on the shelf. It brings a dark, faintly cocoa-like note that the nose registers as sweetness while the tongue does not, and it settles beneath the citrus where a plainer recipe would have nothing at all. Above it, citrus peels open the nose bright and clean, while cardamom with cinnamon supplies an aromatic warmth across the centre of the palate. Lemon balm adds a soft green lemony note distinct from the peel, almond contributes a marzipan roundness, and liquorice smooths the joins. Angelica and orris root hold the base dry, which is what keeps eleven botanicals from turning soft.

The palate is fresh and enveloping at once, and the finish stays aromatic rather than sharp.

That combination of freshness and weight makes it forgiving. Plain tonic raises no objection here, and orange peel reaches the carob and the warm spices more directly than anything else; lemon peel sharpens the citrus instead if that is the reading you want. Fill the glass properly and pour without hurrying, since the deeper botanicals take a moment to arrive and a rushed drink shows only the citrus. It also makes a rounder NegroniNegroniAn Italian cocktail of equal parts gin, sweet vermouth and red bitter (Campari), served over ice with orange peel. Born in Florence in 1919.Glossary than most London Dry gins manage. Anniversary bottlings are usually an excuse for a label; this one went to the trouble of sourcing its botanicals by region. It closes warm, citric and gently sweet in aroma.