Imperfect Spirits Original Dry Gin

Imperfect Spirits began in a gin bar, where, as the founders tell it, a girl's sparkle met a boy's love for gin; two children and plenty of happy chaos later, the couple created an Australian distillery that celebrates life's quirks. At 40% ABV, their Original 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 is the small-batchSmall batchProduction in small quantities per distillation run, often in a small still. The term has no legal definition.Glossary gin at the centre of the range. The distillery starts from a clean base spirit, lets the vapour rise through a hand-picked selection of botanicals, and keeps only the heart of the run. The distillery delivers its gins across Australia.

Citrus · Dry · Spicy · Herbal · Earthy

It opens with a bold burst of juniper, resinousResinousAn aroma reminiscent of pine or fir resin. It is juniper's signature, due to compounds such as pinene.Glossary and pine-like. Sage follows with an earthy, herbal depth, and pepperberryTasmanian pepperberryA wild Australian berry: fruity at first, then a slowly building heat. It can tint the gin pink.Glossary, the native Australian berry, brings a lively, slightly numbing spice. Warm coriander and sweet fennel smooth the middle, while angelica root adds a dry, rooty base. Zesty lime closes the palate with a fresh, sharp finish. The progression is easy to follow: resin, then herbs and spice, then citrus, with each botanical tied to the juniper rather than competing with it.

The distillery's gift box pairs the gin with Long Rays Original Tonic, a low-sugar Australian tonic made with native ingredients, along with three botanicals from CG Gin Co. to garnish it. Its herbal profile also suits a 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 a sage leaf, or a Southside where the lime and fresh mint meet the sage. A twist of limeTwistA strip of peel twisted over the glass to release its oils, then dropped into the drink.Glossary peel over a neat pour shows the citrus finish best.

For the gin and tonic, fill a balloon glass with clear ice, add 4 cl of gin and 10 cl of Long Rays Original Tonic, then stir once. Add a lime wheel and a small sage leaf to the drink. The tonic keeps the drink dry, the lime picks up the finish, and the sage repeats a botanical already in the gin.