Imagination Black Barn Barrel Aged Syrah Gin

Black Barn winemakers helped Imagination select the French oak barriques used for this 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 Syrah gin. The distillery fills lightly toasted, tightly grained casks that previously held Syrah with its triple-distilledTriple distilledThe spirit goes through the still three times before or with the botanicals: each run cleans it up, giving a purer, softer base.Glossary 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, then allows time in wood to shape the spirit. Bottled at 44.2% ABV, it brings the base gin's botanicals into a distinctly oak-led setting. Juniper, coriander, mānuka, whole New Zealand orange and lemon, cinnamon and liquorice form the underlying recipe.

Woody · Spicy · Fruity

The aroma is fruity, with a hint of toffee and cinnamon described by the producer. Sweet spice opens the palate before a soft piney oak note takes over, and the finish returns to dry spice. The colour comes from the toasted oak and the Syrah previously held in the barrels; it may fade over time. JuniperJuniperThe one compulsory botanical: gin must taste predominantly of juniper. Its "berry" is really a small conifer cone, resinous and peppery.Glossary remains underneath the cask influence, so the wine-barrel character adds to the gin rather than replacing it.

The collaboration links the distillery in Reikorangi Valley with Black Barn's winemakers in Hawke's Bay. They chose tightly grained French oak barriques with a light toast, previously used for Syrah, and Imagination rested its triple-distilled dry gin in them. The choice of cask is central to the finished gin: Syrah seasoning meets toasted French oak, while the triple-distilled base carries the change without losing its botanical shape. It suits drinkers who enjoy the meeting of gin, wine cask and gentle spice.

Serve 4.5 cl over ice with 10 cl Sanpellegrino Tonica Oakwood. Its woody, gently bitter notes echo the cask without making the drink heavy. Add a dehydrated grapefruit wheel and a fresh rosemary sprig to the cocktail, then place matching garnishes beside the glass. Stir once, slowly. Grapefruit cuts through the oak and rosemary brings a fragrant herbal note beside the gin's dry-spice finish.