LW Gin Go 32 ml

LW Gin Go 32 ml

Sometimes you don’t want something new and exciting. You want a gin and tonic that tastes the way a gin and tonic always has: dry, fragrant with juniper and so refreshing that the glass mists over. It is a flavour on which generations of bars have built their drinks lists, and it rests on a simple principle – juniper first, everything else second.

Gin Go is precisely that kind of gin. No cucumber, no rose petals, no surprises. What you get instead is a taut and honest botanical profile in which every element has a job to do: juniper for character, lemon peel for freshness, coriander for warmth and angelica for dryness. That is why it works so well with tonic – the bitterness of quinine and the piney side of gin were made for each other.

Colour & Appearance

Once mixed, the gin is completely clear and colourless, bright as spring water. It looks exactly the way it tastes: clean, unaffected and without frills.

Nose

The nose is juniper from the very first second – crushed berries, spruce resin and freshly cut pine needles. Behind that come dry lemon peel, coriander seed and an earthy, slightly musky note of angelica root. Deep down there is a pinch of pepper and a faint sweetness like liquorice root, but the overall impression is forest and citrus.

Palate

The taste is dry and direct. The juniper sets the tone immediately, resin-fresh and a little bitter in that appetite-whetting way. The lemon peel brightens the mid-palate and the coriander adds a warm, spicy note reminiscent of orange and sage. The body is medium, with no sweetness to hide behind, and a peppery heat builds towards the end. Mixed with tonic, what ought to happen does happen: the juniper steps forward, the bubbles lift the citrus and the drink becomes greater than the sum of its parts.

Finish

The aftertaste is taut, clean and medium in length. Pine and lemon peel remain together with a dry prickle of pepper, and the mouth feels refreshed rather than sated.

How to Use

The essence is mixed with vodka or neutral spirit and the gin is ready to serve straight away. 32 ml makes two 750 ml bottles, 1.5 litres in total. Instructions are on the label.

Serving Suggestions

• Gin and tonic in a tall glass with plenty of ice and a wedge of lime.
• With grapefruit soda or bitter lemon – dry, tart and thirst-quenching.
• Tom Collins with lemon, sugar syrup and soda.
• Gin Rickey: lime, soda water and no sugar at all.
• Red Snapper – tomato juice, spices and gin in place of vodka.

About the Essence

Gin Go belongs to the LW series, where 32 ml of essence gives two full bottles. It is one of the true stalwarts of the range: uncomplicated, good value and impossible to get wrong. If you only have room for one gin in the drinks cabinet, this is the kind of gin that should be standing there.

The same flavour is sold under the name Dry Gin in larger sizes – 60 ml, 100 ml, 280 ml, 1000 ml, 5 litres and 25 litres. If you would like an even more austere, sharper-citrus version for Martinis, there is Gin Dry in the Ultra Premium series.