Juniper grown in the Himalayas is not the same berry as juniper grown anywhere else, and Jin Jiji builds its case on that. Peak Spirits distils it in copper pots in the foothills, adding tulsi, chamomile and Italian botanicals, and bottling at 40% ABV. Tulsi is the entry that will be unfamiliar to most drinkers: holy basil, a plant with a long place in Indian households, aromatic and slightly clove-like rather than simply green.

The gin opens dry and herbal, with the Himalayan juniper reading a little softer and more perfumed than the resinous northern kind. Tulsi arrives immediately behind it and is unmistakable once you know it, warm and faintly peppery, closer to a spice than to a leaf. Chamomile provides the floral half of the profile, gentle and honeyed, and it takes the edge off the herbal intensity without sweetening the drink. The Italian botanicals fill the gaps with a classical dryness that a purely Indian recipe would not have, and that meeting of two botanical traditions is what the whole recipe is for. The palate is dry throughout, herbal in the middle, and floral only at the close.

A gin this specific rewards a plain build. Use a neutral tonic, ice the glass properly, and let it sit a moment before drinking; tulsi opens with dilution rather than immediately. Lemon peel lifts the whole thing without redirecting it, and a single basil leaf is the more interesting garnish because it points directly at the tulsi. Avoid herbal or floral tonics, which crowd the chamomile. It is also worth a small measure neat, where the softer Himalayan juniper separates most clearly from the spice around it. Few gins carry an Indian botanical this legibly without turning it into a gimmick. It finishes dry, herbal and quietly floral.