Sir Chill Gin France

Thirty-nine percent is an odd number to land on. Most flavoured gins sit at 37.5, the legal minimum, or go up to 40; a single point below forty looks like an accident and is not, since it is exactly enough to carry citrus oils without letting the alcohol dominate a recipe built on mandarin. Sir Chill makes this France Edition in Belgium.

Citrus · Spicy · Earthy

Mandarin zest leads, and peel rather than juice is the correct decision: it gives the bright, slightly bitter aromatic top that a fruit alone would not. Ginger follows with a clean heat that builds through the middle instead of arriving all at once. Star anise adds a defined aniseed lift beside it, sweeter and more perfumed than the ginger is, and the two spices between them give the recipe its shape. The tobacco plant extract is calibrated rather than featured: it grounds the whole thing with a dry, earthy depth and acts as a bridge between the volatile citrus at the top and the more resinousResinousAn aroma reminiscent of pine or fir resin. It is juniper's signature, due to compounds such as pinene.Glossary spice below. Smokiness is not what it is there for.

The palate opens soft, citrus arriving immediately, then the ginger heat and the herbal edge of the anise. The texture stays relatively light for a flavoured ginFlavoured ginGin with flavourings, often fruity, added after distillation. It may be coloured and lightly sweetened.GlossarySee Flavoured gin gins, and the finish is medium, citrus lingering with a discreet earthy dryness underneath.

Pair it with a neutral tonic at moderate dilutionDilutionThe water added by melting ice. In the right amount it opens the aromas and softens the alcohol; too much flattens the drink.Glossary and avoid an aggressive quinineQuinineAn alkaloid from cinchona bark that gives tonic its bitterness. The British in India drank it against malaria and added gin: the gin and tonic was born.Glossary, which will override the mandarin before anything else goes wrong. In cocktails it works best in light builds where the gin stays the main aromatic voice rather than arguing with a heavy modifier. Four elements, one of them present only to hold the other three down, make a leaner arrangement than the category usually bothers with, and the odd strength is part of the same discipline.