Big River Lanyon Dry Gin

Fresh spruce from the gardens of Lanyon Homestead, a historic property near Canberra, gives Big River Lanyon Dry GinDry ginGin with no perceptible sweetness: in the European Union, the word "dry" allows at most 0.1 g of sugar per litre.GlossarySee Dry gin gins its alpine character. The homestead also grows the juniper, and the gin is gently rested in well-seasoned French oak from Lark Hill Winery before bottling at 50% ABV. Seville orange peel, cardamom, sweet almond, yarrow and grains of paradise complete the recipe.

Citrus · Spicy · Herbal

The first impression is evergreen and resinousResinousAn aroma reminiscent of pine or fir resin. It is juniper's signature, due to compounds such as pinene.Glossary, followed by the bitter, bright edge of Seville orange. Cardamom and grains of paradiseGrains of paradiseWest African seeds related to cardamom, also called melegueta pepper: peppery and warm, with a citrus note.Glossary bring a warm, gently peppery middle; sweet almond softens the transitions, and yarrow adds a fine herbal note. The finish is firm and dry, with spruce lingering after the orange recedes. The well-seasoned oak adds little wood flavour but rounds the texture, so the evergreen and citrus stay at the centre. The result tastes of the garden and the forest rather than of a single pine note. Yarrow has a slightly bitter scent, close to chamomile.

At 50%, the gin has the strength for a long drink, though a modest measure of tonic helps the more delicate botanicals stay distinct. Its resinous, bitter-orange profile also suits a MartinezMartinezThe presumed ancestor of the Martini: gin (often Old Tom), sweet vermouth, maraschino and bitters, stirred over ice and served straight up.Glossary or a 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, and a dry MartiniDry MartiniGin and a little dry vermouth, stirred over ice and served in a well-chilled stemmed glass, with an olive or a twist.Glossary with an orange twistTwistA strip of peel twisted over the glass to release its oils, then dropped into the drink.Glossary. The collaboration ties the gin to a specific place, its ingredients grown in the homestead's own gardens.

For a gin and tonic, fill a highball with clear ice, add 4 cl of gin and 10 cl of StrangeLove Tonic No.8, and stir once. Place a small spruce tip and a narrow Seville orange peel in the drink. The dry tonic keeps the finish crisp and leaves the spruce as the defining note.