Compass Gin Royal

Butterfly pea blossom gives Compass Gin Royal its royal-blue colour. Nova Scotian wheat forms its base, while local honey and royal jelly add a gentle sweetness. Bottled at 45% ABV, the gin also supports pollinators: Compass notes that bees support many of the plants used in gin and donates one dollar from each bottle to the Nova Scotia Beekeepers Association.

Spicy · Floral

JuniperJuniperThe one compulsory botanical: gin must taste predominantly of juniper. Its "berry" is really a small conifer cone, resinous and peppery.Glossary, orange and peppery spice appear on the nose, with coriander and light floral honey behind them.

The palate brings juniper and honey together in a bold but balanced way; warming spice carries through the finish. The colour also responds to acidity: lemon or lime and tonic can shift the blue toward violet or pink. This change is visible in the glass, while the honey rounds the citrus and keeps the overall taste from becoming sharply dry.

Compass recommends serving Gin Royal over ice with tonic and lemon or lime. That simple combination brings 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 into view and keeps the recipe close to the spirit's profile. The distillery's pollinator donation is part of the gin's identity, not a flavour claim: local honey and royal jelly are ingredients, while the blue comes from butterfly pea blossomButterfly peaA South-East Asian flower that turns gin blue. When it meets the acidity of tonic or citrus, it changes to pink.Glossary. The result is an unusual coloured gin that still retains recognizable juniper, citrus and spice.

For the long serve, pour 45 ml over ice and slowly add 100 ml Double Dutch Indian Tonic WaterIndian tonicThe classic tonic: sparkling water, bitter quinine and sugar. The name recalls colonial India, where quinine warded off malaria.Glossary. Add a lime slice and lemon twistTwistA strip of peel twisted over the glass to release its oils, then dropped into the drink.Glossary inside the glass, then repeat them on a small plate beside it. The tonic and citrus move the blue toward violet, and the quinineQuinineAn alkaloid from cinchona bark that gives tonic its bitterness. The British in India drank it against malaria and added gin: the gin and tonic was born.Glossary gives the honeyed palate a clean counterpoint. Keep the garnish restrained and avoid sweetened mixers; a gentle stir is enough to combine the drink without obscuring the colour.