As I have written here before, Stockholms Bränneri is one of absolutely favorite producers of gin in Sweden. I don’t always like cask aged gin but when Stockholms Bränneri released their version I needed to try it of course.
But I wasn’t the only one who wanted to try it, the first batch with 456 bottles was released in a before announced time on line, and it sold out in less then 5 minutes! I had set an alarm so I wouldn´t miss it but I didn’t think that I needed to be that fast, so I did miss it.
When batch number 2 was released i was really fast, and I got my hands on a bottle, actually bottle number 1 in batch 2.
Anna and Calle from Stockholms Bränneri recommend that you drink it with ice and orange zest. Generally, I prefer to sip gin room temperature. And of course, I need to try it in a Dry Martini, even though cask aged gin is rarely suited for that.
It’s the same beautiful bottle as on the regular Dry Gin but it´s now transparent. The label looks basically the same, very stylish and with some of the information hand written on it. It´s now pale yellow instead of the white original. The cork has a stylish wooden top.
The content is quite different though, sure some of the character is recognized from the original but the two extra botanicals and the cask has made a really different touch. It also have a higher ABV than the original, 45% instead of 40%.
They describe this gin as:
“Our OAK gin is distilled with orange peel and long pepper, and has rested on bourbon barrels to bring a smooth marriage between the classic gin tones with orange and the vanilla tones from the bourbon casks. We call this gin a sipping gin, best enjoyed neat on ice.”
Tasting Notes
Nose
- Strong with a smooth scent, orange and pepper is very noticeable with some juniper after. No typical signs of cask ageing but I detect some sweetness.
Neat
- Very smooth. Some cask character in the after taste, no alcohol burn. Also, here is orange and pepper quite clearly and a feeling of sweetness. Small taste of juniper. Very pleasant to enjoy neat, I don’t follow SB’s recommendation to drink it with ice and orange zest, I rather enjoy it like this.
Martini
- It’s a bit harder to make a good martini with this gin, make sure to keep everything very cold. I used 5 cl gin to 0.5 cl Dolin Vermouth, stir with lots of ice and serve with a small orange zest.
- You’ll get a nice, smooth taste where orange, pepper and juniper mixes together. It has a long and soft after taste.
- A real pleasure, for the first sip I closed my eyes and just relaxed and enjoyed. An amazing Dry Martini!
Gin and Tonic
- No! Don’t go there. This is gin made for sipping and it works beautiful in cocktails, but don’t use it for a G&T.
The Take Home
What to say?! I love the regular Stockholms Bränneri Dry Gin, this is even better and possibly the absolute best cask aged gin I ever had.
5/5 stars feels low, if you have the chance to buy this, do it!
Cheers!
Details
- Website: http://www.stockholmsbranneri.com/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/stockholmsbranneri/
- Instagram: http://instagram.com/stockholmsbranneri
- Twitter: No
- Where to purchase: Available in Denmark, Finland, Belgium, Italy, Russia, Japan, Hong Kong. Soon Australia and Austria. To order it in Sweden, https://www.systembolaget.se/dryck/sprit/stockholms-branneri-oak-gin-3187502
- RRP: Euro 40 Approx. for a 500ml bottle
- ABV 45%
Our Guest Contributor
A Swede that now lives on the small Danish island Læsø together with my girlfriend Emma and our Italian Greyhounds.
I used to be a chef, but now I am the head of a web agency. I still have a big interest in good food and good beverages with gin and a good Dry Martini as my biggest passions. I prefer my Martinis stirred, ice cold and with zest while enjoying Frank Sinatra, a the view of the ocean and the company of my girlfriend.
I mostly write about Swedish and Danish gins here and I´m also a coauthor of an upcoming book about Swedish gin
You can follow Jens Josefsson on Instagram here.
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