Old Tom is the style that sits between genever and London Dry, sweeter than one and heavier than the other, and it had almost disappeared before distillers went back to the nineteenth-century books. Hayman's works from a family recipe of that period, ten botanicals including juniper, coriander, angelica and liquorice, and the gentle sweetness is the defining feature of the whole category.

Sweetness in an Old Tom is not sugar in the modern sense; it is a matter of proportion and of which botanicals carry weight. Liquorice root is the main agent here, sweet without sugar and long on the palate, and the chewy quality of the finish comes from it. Juniper is unusually intense, opening on vibrant citrus and pine before moving into something the makers describe as juniper custard, which is a strange phrase and an accurate one: the texture really is creamy, and that richness is what a dry gin never offers. Baking spice appears through the middle, coriander and angelica supplying the warm and earthy halves of it, with the rest of the list filling in around them. Floral and herbal notes run alongside without ever stepping forward.

A whole family of classic cocktails was written for this style and abandoned when it vanished. The Martinez is the obvious place to start, the Tom Collins the easiest, and the Ramos Gin Fizz the one where the creamy texture genuinely matters. In a gin and tonic, use a neutral tonic and less of it than usual, since the sweetness needs no help. Lemon peel remains the correct garnish throughout. Reviving a category is harder than inventing one. Old Tom disappeared because tastes moved on, not because the style was wrong, and a bottle like this is the argument for its return. It ends sweet-edged, spiced and creamy.