Jared Brown: Sipsmith’s master distiller
relatively easy to make, requires no longterm barrel aging and – depending on one’s ambitions – investment is generally lower for gin. Outside of the big players and a small number of craft distilleries, the base alcohol or ‘neutral spirit’ is made elsewhere. In theory then, gin makers are more ‘redistillers’ than distillers. You can take a gin distillery class in the morning and literally be drinking your gin by the evening. But, while making gin is a breeze, making good gin is anything but. Which then begs the question: What makes a good gin? distillery – the rebirth of craft gin is a
says Brown. “If you look at the enduring
recent development.
dominance of whisky, gin at one time was
This is almost hard to believe considering
up there and then gin fell out of favour.
the hundreds of craft gin distilleries today
LEAD FLAVOUR “Ah…first it has to lead with juniper, but
in the UK – or the hundreds that used to
“Today, gin is simply returning. When we
that’s a bit like saying wine is made with
exist in the 19th century.
started, there were 12 distilleries making
grapes,” says Brown.
20 brands of gin in Britain. New HMRC figures show a record
“This is the spirit of England – born
According to the master distiller, gin has
number of distilleries were registered
in London – and there were only 12
to be made with juniper from the north
in the UK in 2020 – growing by over 124
distilleries making it! Think of that in
Mediterranean. While the juniper plant
in 12 months – for the first time, with
IPA terms. Imagine a time in the history
grows sub-Arctic to sub-tropic all the way
Covid-19 failing to put the brakes on
of IPA, when there were only a dozen
around the northern hemisphere, only
the distillery boom. This figure is up 28
breweries making it.”
in the north Mediterranean do you have
percent on 2019, doubling the number
the terroir that produces that particular
of UK distilleries in four years, for a total
Doug Hunter, Sipsmith’s head of
flavour of soft pine, sweet citrus that
number of over 560.
operations in London and formerly of
comes up in good gin.
Fuller’s, agrees with Brown. Remarkably, the number of distilleries in
“Sipsmith is now becoming a much
“I’ve worked with juniper from Britain, it
England has almost tripled since 2016,
more established brand, but I think what
tastes like moss. I’ve worked with juniper
which was the same year that the gin
Sipsmith captured when they started was
from the American Rockies. It’s intensely
boom helped the number of English
the reintroduction of gin as our national
sweet, almost a bubble gum, with that
distilleries overtake Scotland for the first
drink. That had been lost somewhere,”
particular flavour underlying. So for me, I
time, according to the Wine & Spirit Trade
says Hunter.
will only work with juniper from the north
Association.
Mediterranean. “Gin was incredibly unfashionable; that
In another first, England’s distillery
was simply because people weren’t
“But what more broadly makes a good
numbers have now passed 300, with 311
drinking very good gins at the time. That’s
gin, the satiation point in the glass?” says
registered distilleries in 2020.
where Sipsmith can take a great level of
Brown. “I can make a product that will
Scotland has increased its number
credit, in that they captured the essence
blow you away on first sip.
of distilleries to 214, and Wales and
of making the best gin that you could in a
“But you can’t get through a glass of it.
Northern Ireland saw distillery numbers
traditional method.”
And so, I always want the satiation point
grow too.
to be somewhere just below the stem of One of the reasons for the higher
that glass, or just below the bowl, just at
“Personally, I think that gin is simply
proportion of new gin distilleries opening,
the stem.
recovering its own position in the market,”
compared to other spirits, is that gin is
“So when you finish that, it seems like it
34
|
SUMMER 2021
DISTILLERS JOURNAL
