Bright Night Chardonnay Barrel Aged Gin

Nine months in a French oak barrel that once held Chardonnay turn Bright Night's Wild Tasmanian Gin into this Chardonnay Barrel AgedBarrel-aged ginGin rested for a while in wooden casks. It picks up a golden colour and notes of vanilla, spice or the wine that filled the cask before.GlossarySee Barrel-aged gin gins Gin. The cask comes from Goaty Hill, a winery in Tasmania's Tamar Valley. Sold in 700 ml at 45% ABV, it keeps the fourteen botanicals of its base: juniper, coriander, Tasmanian pepperberry, kunzea, macadamia, lemon myrtle, citrus peels, elderberry, green cardamom, cassia, angelica, orris, sarsaparilla and clove.

Woody · Earthy · Vanilla

In the glass, the colour is a pale straw. Creamy oak, buttery vanilla and caramel come first on the nose, laid over the earthy warmth of the house gin.

On the palate, oak and vanilla are joined by spice, with cassiaCassiaThe bark of a Chinese cinnamon tree, coarser and hotter than Ceylon cinnamon. It brings a warm, slightly sweet spice.Glossary and cardamom clearly present, while pepperberry and lemon myrtleLemon myrtleThe leaf of an Australian tree with an intense lemon scent, purer than zest and without acidity.Glossary keep a native thread running through. The Chardonnay link comes from the barrel's previous use and shows as a soft, rounded richness rather than as wine. Juniper stays underneath the cask notes to the end. Clove and sarsaparilla add a faint, warming bitterness that keeps the vanilla in check.

The maturation changes the gin's aroma, colour and texture without adding any new ingredient. Bright Night suggests it neat or over ice, where the vanilla and caramel open slowly as the gin warms. It also works with tonic if the mixer is kept measured, and in stirred drinks such as a MartinezMartinezThe presumed ancestor of the Martini: gin (often Old Tom), sweet vermouth, maraschino and bitters, stirred over ice and served straight up.Glossary, where the oak meets sweet vermouthVermouthAn aromatised, fortified wine flavoured with herbs and barks; its name comes from the German Wermut, wormwood. Dry vermouth goes into a Martini, sweet red into a Negroni.Glossary naturally. A small glass after dinner shows the caramel notes at their best.

For a gin and tonic, fill a 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 with clear iceClear iceIce without air bubbles, made by slow, directional freezing. Denser, it melts more slowly and dilutes less.Glossary, add 5 cl of gin and 10 cl of Fever-Tree Mediterranean Tonic Water, and stir gently once. A lemon twist and a small oak shaving finish the drink: the lemon brings a fresh counterpoint to the barrel's rounder notes, and the oak echoes the maturation.