Another Hendrick’s (44%)
(If the following review rouses your curiosity, there are two tasting options available to GTA residents and visitors over the next couple of weeks. First, you can join me at The Depanneur on June 12 for my Gin & Tonic Workshop, where you’ll sample Another Hendrick’s and five other gins plus a handful of tonic waters, discuss ratios, techniques, and garnishes, and finally craft your own personalized G&T. The second is this coming weekend, May 28 to 31, at the sure-to-be-eccentric Hendrick’s Gin ‘Anotherland’ experience on Jarvis Street near Wellesley. Follow the links for details and tickets.)
It is not an exaggeration to say that, to a very great degree, Hendrick’s Gin changed the way the world thinks about gin. For prior to the launch of the cucumber and rose petal-flavoured original, gin was possibly the world’s most polarizing spirit, loved by some for the very same hit of juniper that made it despised by others. Aside from Bombay Sapphire, which is more a toned down gin than it is a true variation on the juniper-forward classic, there was very little in the world of gin to attract the haters of juniper.
Hendrick’s changed that by introducing the botanical gin category, variously also known as floral gin or sometimes—incorrectly, since Hendrick’s was arguably the originator—New World gin. Such gins are more floral and far less junipery than a standard gin in the London dry style and thus appeal more to those who might enjoy some botanical element sans the assertive taste of juniper.
After Hendrick’s came the Hendrick’s variations, of which there have been many. (The LCBO website currently lists five such spin-off brands, although two are in low supply, while the Hendrick’s website has eight.) I wrote a column for Whisky Advocate magazine some eight years ago that featured the Orbium variation, so they have been around for a while now. Hence, I think, the no doubt tongue-in-cheek naming of this particular version.
Another Hendrick’s is, I’m told, the regular Hendrick’s recipe with added orange blossom and cacao beans, the latter of which seems more apparent throughout than does the former. The aroma has that identifiable Hendrick’s character of rose, cucumber, and mild juniper, but seems a bit more floral and shows a light chocolate side, as well – curiously, the chocolate seems to grow more pronounced the colder the gin is served.
The palate entry is on the sweet side, with cucumber, light peppery juniper, a hint of chocolate candy, and a mouthfeel that seems richer and creamier than you might expect of a gin. On the midpalate that creamy, almost oily character grows, as does the presence of the cocoa and, identifiably for the first time, floral orange notes, alongside more evident and peppery juniper and a bit of cucumber peel. The finish starts with a bit of juniper, but lingers with dark chocolate notes which, once tasted, return to bring forward the cocoa character in all subsequent sips.
Sampled at room temperature, this is an obvious Hendrick’s variation with a bit of nuanced floral and cocoa character. Chilled, however, it becomes something quite different, a Terry’s Chocolate Orange of a gin, with obvious cocoa notes that set it quite apart from pretty much anything else in the gin category. A bit of a curiosity, for sure, but one which defies that same curiosity to make a very unusual but highly enjoyable Martini.
88 ($54 - $56)
