Review

Brandon's Gin

Rock Town Distillery Inc., Little Rock, Arkansas, USA.

Rock Town Distillery.

Opened in the summer of 2010, this was the first distillery to open in Arkansas since prohibition. It is owned and operated by Phil Brandon with the support of a small team, including his wife Diana.

This Gin was launched in the late summer of 2010, and was one of their first products, launched simultaneously with Brandon’s Vodka.

The base spirit is made just like their Vodka, from soft red winter wheat grown locally in South East Arkansas. Using a copper pot still the botanicals are added by vapor infusion in a basket or still-hat with a one-shot method, in small batches.

The Gin is presented in a clear squat circular bottle with rounded shoulders. The elegantly simple design includes: a part green and part black top with batch and bottle numbers hand written, a slim black colored rectangular label with rounded corners running from top to bottom and “Brandon’s” written clearly in white text, and a small circular green colored label at the bottom of the bottle with “Gin” written in white text.

New Western Dry Gin.

46% (92 Proof).

$$$. Available within the USA, try online at: Binny’s Beverage Depot  and Beer Liquors. For international shipping outside of the USA try Master of Malt in the UK, but expect to pay around 40% extra for shipping costs (for 1 bottle, decreasing the more bottles ordered). 

Uses 7 botanicals: angelica, anise, cinnamon, coriander, juniper berries, lemon peel and orange peel.

Named after the founder and owner, Phil Brandon.

On the nose is fresh juniper and citrus (lemon & coriander) with liquorice (anise), hints of ginger-like peppery spice (coriander & cinnamon) and very faint traces of earthy green grass notes (angelica). On the palate this reasonably smooth medium to full-bodied spirit has sharp citrus, cinnamon sweet spicy pepper, juniper and warm anise. In the close these flavors continue but a stronger mouth feel appears with a faint vanilla and soft spicy bitter orange on the finish. Found more in the aroma than the taste this is a pleasingly complex multi-dimensional Gin.

While the juniper and citrus makes for a classic styled Gin liked by traditional Gin drinkers, the spice and anise almost share center stage, putting this clearly in the contemporary style. The smooth mouth feel means this is a nice Gin for sipping neat, with the addition of ice and citrus garnish a matter of personal choice. In a Gin and Tonic some of its subtleties can become lost but what remains still makes for a very enjoyable drink and we suggest using a ratio of 3:1 or even 2:1 to keep more of its nuances. We really liked using this in a Martini best of all, with a preference for it on the dryer side and a lemon peel twist, it created a tipple of charm you could easily imagine a modern day James Bond ordering. As an interesting diversion we tried this Gin mixed with bitter lemon and, to the surprise of many, it proved to be a delightfully different summer time alternative.

Overall this is very good (including the price), with nice contemporary notes that wanders, but not too far, from a classic Gin flavor profile. It is strongly recommended for classic Gin enthusiasts looking for more of a twist to enliven staid palates, providing a welcome bridge between old school “English stiff upper lip” and modern “wild west” without losing flavor.

88 Points, Wine Enthusiast.

87 Points, Beverage Testing Institute.

Silver Medal, American Distilling Institute Awards, 2013.

Double Gold Medal, San Francisco World Spirits Competition, 2011.