Make your own Gin
The information below and the first recipe are courtesy of the Craft Gin Club
The only real stipulation for it to be called ‘gin’ is that there is juniper is the dominant botanical and it is at least 37.5% ABV. Beyond that, the world is kind of your oyster.
Without the final distillation process used by the pros, your own batch will come out looking a bit yellowy or orange, depending on which botanicals you use. This won’t do you any harm, but if you’d rather have a clearer-looking spirit, you can simply pass it through a water filter jug a few times (we don’t normally bother though as it doesn’t affect the taste!).
Beyond the vodka and the juniper berries, you can feel free to experiment with whatever botanicals you like. Some of the most commonly used gin botanicals (after juniper) are coriander seed, angelica root, citrus peel and cassia bark or cinnamon – but feel free to raid the spice cabinet and herb garden. You could try bay leaves, rosemary, liquorice powder, lavender, cardamom, cumin, fennel seeds, lemongrass…pretty much anything you fancy!
If you’re not sure where to start, check out the botanicals that are included in your favourite gins and go from there.
Here’s a basic recipe to get you started
INGREDIENTS
750ml good quality vodka
2 tbsp juniper berries (more if you like juniper-forward gin)
1 tsp coriander seeds
2 cardamom pods
2 peppercorns
Half a cinnamon stick
A small piece of dried orange peel (remove the white pith as it’s very bitter)
A small piece of dried lemon peel (again, no pith)
DIRECTIONS
Sterilise a clean mason jar or glass bottle with boiling water
Add your botanicals to the jar, minus any fresh peel
Top up with vodka
Leave to infuse in a cool dark place for 24hours
Taste the infusion – it should have taken on some lovely juniper ginnyness already. Add your fresh peel, along with and extra botanicals whose flavour you want to boost.
Leave for up to another 24 hours, giving the bottle a gentle shake at least once. Beware of leaving it too long and over-infusing the mixture – think of it a bit like brewing tea.
Taste again and if you’re happy, then filter out all the botanicals using a sieve. If there’s still some sediment left, use some muslin or a coffee filter to strain again.
Leave the liquid to sit for a couple of days and then filter out any remaining sediment – and put through a water filter jug if you want to make it even clearer (but as we said, don’t worry too much about the colour.)
Bottle your gin
SWANN LOUNGE GIN
Contributed by Michael Haggerty
INGREDIENTS:
1 (1.75-L) bottle 100-proof vodka (such as Smirnoff Blue Label)
2 tbsp juniper berries
1 tsp coriander seeds
Peels of 2 grapefruits
Peel of 1 lemon
Peel of 1 orange
4 cloves
.5 tsp angelica root
.25 tsp cassia bark
.25 tsp fennel seeds
PREPARATION: Pour the vodka into a large jar or bowl. Place the remaining ingredients into a muslin bag (or tie them up in a piece of cheesecloth). Submerge in the vodka and let stand for 3 days. Remove the bag and rebottle the liquid.
JUNIPER AND LEMON AQUAVIT
Contributed by Keri Levens
INGREDIENTS:
1 (750-mL) bottle Vodka
Peel of 1 lemon
.5 cup Juniper berries
PREPARATION: Add all the ingredients to a large jar or bowl and let stand at room temperature for 2 to 3 weeks. Strain, and store in the refrigerator.