Vålerenga Gin

Vålerenga Gin honours its Oslo neighbourhood with a naturally blue colour and a recipe built on a classic gin base. Oslo Håndverksdestilleri macerates butterfly pea and bilberries for one week; the berries give the drink a full fruit character, while the flower brings the blue hue. At 40% ABV, the gin is bottled in a 70 cl glass bottle.

Fruity · Herbal

The palate begins with bilberry and forest-berry notes, then returns to juniper and familiar gin spices. The macerationMacerationBotanicals soak in alcohol, from a few hours to several days, before distillation to release their aromas.Glossary gives the fruit a rounded presence, but it does not turn the drink into a liqueur. When tonic is added, the blue liquid shifts toward purple. This visible change comes from the colour response of the infusionInfusionFruit or plants are steeped in the spirit to release their flavour. Done after distillation, infusion often adds colour too, and the gin can no longer be called London Dry.Glossary, not from a separate flavouring step.

A lemon zest gives the serve a bright counterpoint to the berries. A classic gin and tonic with dry tonic and lemon zest brings juniper and bilberry into focus, while butterfly peaButterfly peaA South-East Asian flower that turns gin blue. When it meets the acidity of tonic or citrus, it changes to pink.Glossary supplies the blue colour. The first sip therefore moves from berry aroma to a cleaner citrus finish, with the dry tonic limiting sweetness.

The label incorporates Vålerenga Church as a tribute to the district and its community. The gin itself is macerated for a week with butterfly pea and bilberries, a process that defines both its colour and its fruit-led direction. A classic juniper base gives the berry-led gin a bold, clear character.

Pour 5 cl over ice into a large balloon glassCopa glassA large stemmed balloon glass, popularised by the Spanish gin and tonic: it stays cold for longer and gathers the aromas above the drink.Glossary and top with 10 cl of Schweppes Dry Tonic. Add a fine lemon zest and a few bilberries to the drink. Dry tonic keeps the berries crisp, while lemon brings lift to their aroma. Watch the colour changeColour-changing ginGin tinted with butterfly pea flower, whose pigments shift from blue to pink when the acidity of tonic or lemon lowers the pH.Glossary as the tonic meets the blue gin, then stir only once to preserve the carbonation.