BUSS N°509 Midi Cut Gin

Provençal herbs give BUSS N°509 Midi Cut its direction. Rosemary, thyme, marjoram and basil form the herbal backbone, bay leaf sharpens it, and the bottling runs at 45% ABV inside the N°509 Choice Cut Collection, the series in which each bottle is built around one clearly defined idea.

Citrus · Spicy · Herbal

The spirit is distilled from pure grain with fresh botanicals and fruit: juniper berriesJuniperThe one compulsory botanical: gin must taste predominantly of juniper. Its "berry" is really a small conifer cone, resinous and peppery.Glossary and coriander seeds for the classic frame, fresh oranges and lemons for lift, then liquorice root, angelica, vanilla, cardamom and iris root to fill out the middle. No colourant, preservative or post-distillation sweetening is used, and the liquid is perfectly clear as a result. An International Wine and Spirit Competition Silver in 2018 came from a blind tasting, which says something about how the balance reads to a panel.

On the nose the southern herbs arrive first, bay and rosemary ahead of thyme and marjoram, with citrus from the fresh peel sitting above the juniper. Cardamom brings warmth, liquorice and vanilla a quiet sweetness that never becomes sugar.

The palate is dry and clean, herbal intensity carried by the higher strength, and the finish is persistent on juniper, bay and soft spice.

Choose a classic neutral tonic so the herbs stay legible, and garnish sparingly: a sprig of thyme, a small piece of bay leaf, or a strip of lemon or orange zest. Pour 40ml of gin and twice as much tonic over large iceLarge iceOne large block melts far more slowly than several small cubes, so the drink stays cold without watering down.Glossary. The same profile makes it one of the more food-friendly gins around, and it holds its own in savoury cocktails where rosemary or basil would normally be muddled in by hand. At 45% there is also enough body for a stirred drink, which is not always true of herb-led recipes, and the Choice Cut series is built precisely on that kind of clarity.