Dicky Bird Weser Dry Gin

Wakame is a seaweed used in miso soup and salads, and its job in this gin is the same as in a kitchen: it supplies umami, the savoury depth that no herb, no root and no citrus can produce. Distilled on the banks of the Weser at Lauenforde in Germany, this recipe uses it in a small quantity beside Tuscan juniper, and it took a silver at the IWSC in 2023.

Dry · Herbal

Umami in a spirit is unusual enough to be worth explaining. It does not taste of the sea in any obvious way; it lengthens the palate and gives the other botanicals something to rest against, so everything above it carries more substance than it would otherwise. Tuscan juniper opens clean and resinousResinousAn aroma reminiscent of pine or fir resin. It is juniper's signature, due to compounds such as pinene.Glossary, that origin being the one most distillers who care about juniper will name. Cardamom follows with its cool camphor lift, cassia bark lays down a dry warmth close to cinnamon, and sweet orange peel takes the middle with a rounder zest. Grapefruit sharpens the top with a clean bitterness, and sea buckthorn adds an intense tartness that no ordinary citrus provides, coastal and bright. Tea leaves contribute a dry tannin that pulls in the same direction as the wakame, and between the pair of them the finish is made to last.

A recipe with this much savoury material rewards a careful glass. Neutral tonic, ice packed high, and a generous pour, since the umami is the first thing dilutionDilutionThe water added by melting ice. In the right amount it opens the aromas and softens the alcohol; too much flattens the drink.Glossary costs you. Grapefruit peel is the garnish that suits the bitterness best; lemon serves if the top wants sharpening instead. Drink it undiluted and barely chilled to identify the wakame most easily. Savoury gins are rare because they are difficult. A German distillery reaching for a Japanese seaweed and a Tuscan berry in the same recipe is not chasing a theme. It closes tart, savoury and long.