FORDS

"I wanted to make a gin that could be sipped on it own, but was really designed for cocktails," says Simon Ford, the mastermind behind Fords Dry London Gin. Distilled at Thames Distillers in London, Fords Gin is produced in collaboration with Charles Maxwell, an eighth generation master distiller.After an English, wheat-based spirit is distilled, Maxwell and Ford macerate nine different botanicals together with the spirit, including juniper berries from Italy, coriander seeds from Romania, lemon peel from Spain, orange peels from Haiti and Morocco, grapefruit peels from Turkey, angelica from Poland, cassia from Indonesia, jasmine from China and orris root from Italy. Following a 15-hour maceration process the maceration process allows the natural flavors and textures of the botanicals to be absorbed by the gin the gin is distilled through Maxwells 500-liter copper still.Fords Dry London Gin has an aroma of citrus peels (particularly grapefruit), cedar and black pepper, which leads to notes of piney juniper and citrus zest on the palate. Perfect served by itself or in cocktails, the gin earned five stars from F. Paul Pacults Spirit Journal and the Chairmans Trophy at the Ultimate Spirits Challenge in 2013.