Coming up with a list of just 5 of the best gins to try is tough. If you’re new to gin, or just want to try something different, there’s a huge range to choose from. We try to whittle it down to 5 gins that we think you should be drinking today. They represent a range of quality gins that each give you something different. These are the 5 best gins to try:
- Plymouth Gin
- Jawbox Gin
- Drumshanbo Gin
- Pickering’s Gin
- Martin Miller’s Gin
1 – Plymouth Gin
We’ve picked Plymouth Gin to kick off with because it’s a high-quality, traditional gin. It’s straight-forward, makes and excellent gin and tonic, and is versatile enough to be used in any range of cocktails.
The botanicals of lemon and orange peel, angelica and orris root, cardamom and coriander combine with the juniper to make for a very smooth drink.
They’ve been making Plymouth Gin on the south coast of England for over 200 years so, if you’ve not tried it yet, you’re long overdue giving it a go! Try this piece of gin royalty from Amazon in the UK; or from Drizly in the US/Canada.
2 – Jawbox Gin
We love Jawbox Gin from N.Ireland; it’s beautifully robust. It weighs in at 43% ABV, and has a botanical mix that includes sarsaparilla and lavender.
We’ve included Jawbox here because, although it makes for a great gin and tonic, we love pairing it with ginger ale and a wedge of lime. It features in our list of gins that go well with ginger ale. If you haven’t tried a gin and ginger ale yet, you should do. And Jawbox comes highly recommended; it’s peppery notes match the ginger perfectly.
Get hold of this modern classic at Amazon or Master of Malt in the UK. It not available from Drizly in the US or Canada at time of writing. As a substitute to pair with ginger ale, we recommend an Opihr Oriental Spiced Gin from Drizly.
3 – Drumshanbo Gin
To give it its full title, this is Drumshanbo Gunpowder Irish Gin. This is a real whichgin.com favourite.
It’s on our list because it has a unique taste. The gunpowder tea in the botanical list gives it a real lift – we’d be confident in saying we’d always be able to pick out a Drumshanbo in a blind gin tasting. There’s star anise, grapefruit and caraway seeds working away here too. It’s like a showcase of some of the best gin botanicals that the world has to offer.
This gin is well worth a try to show you just how much difference botanicals really make. Get a blast of Drumshanbo from Amazon or Master of Malt in the UK, of from Drizly in the US and Canada,
Oh, and the bottle is our current reigning best gin bottle title-holder too.
4 – Pickering’s Gin
We’ve added Pickering’s Gin from Scotland as one of the best gins to try as we think it shows how a gin can evolve over time. We’re effectivley suggesting you try two gins here…
The original recipe, 1947, gin (pictured above) is a warming, robust drink. There are cloves and cinnamon in the botanical mix, and you can feel those coming through.
The newer recipe (pictured below) has been created for us modern types and it’s far more citrusy. This modern expression is lighter on the palate altogether, and we think it’s a touch more versatile. Both are very worth trying though, and tasting them side by side gives you a fantastic way of seeing this evolution of a gin.
The triple pack below (which includes Navy Strength Pickerings’s Gin too) is a great idea for UK customers. The bottles are 5cl each, which gives you a good measure to compare, contrast and find your favourite.
You can also get hold of Pickering’s in the US and Canada via the Drizly link below that’ll take you straight to the order page.
5 – Martin Miller’s Gin
Last, but not least, on our list of 5 gins to try today is Martin Miller’s Gin. We’ve added it because we think it represents a nicely balanced gin, at a good price point, that also has a good quality feel to it.
We noted when we featured this gin that it uses traditional botanicals and some pure Icelandic water to create a very smooth gin. There’s coriander, angelica and citrusy botanicals here, as well as a touch of liquorice.
In the UK, you can buy Martin Miller’s Gin from Amazon or from Master of Malt.
In the US/Canada, you may be able to buy Martin Miller’s gin from Drizly in your area and have it delivered within an hour. Result!
That concludes our list of the best gins to try. It was hard capping it at 5. If you’d like to see a longer list to whet your appetites, why not check out our A-Z gin review list.
