Style_ April 01, 2021

62 Style | Drink
Treat me
Kate Preece enjoys the spoils
from her birthday, and a glass
from someone else’s.
must say, 2021 was a good birthday year
I for me. No, it wasn’t a significant number,
but it was just one of those wonderful days
different enough to mark it as the special
day it deserves to be. And, of course, who
can complain when the end result sees
more gin to enjoy.
Kelp me
I first tried the Isle of Harris gin at the Christchurch
Gindulgence festival some years ago, and it was a winner
from the first sip. Distilled in Tarbert, on Scotland’s Outer
Hebrides, it’s the locally sourced, hand-picked sugar kelp
seaweed that will pique a gin fancier’s interest.
Smooth and balanced, the citrus notes don’t dominate
this dry gin. I didn’t have a grapefruit to hand, but I
appreciate it would be a good way to drink it.
For those who like a good-looking bottle, it gets the
tick, with enough finesse to garner a reaction simply by
putting it on the table.
Hold the lime, caller
An established Tanqueray fan, I was unsure
messing with this recipe could be a good
thing, even with a high-roller ingredient such
as lime. I imagined that Tanqueray Rangpur
had an injection of fake lime essence, which
isn’t exactly fair, and instead I found myself
going back for more.
The drop takes its name from the rangpur
lime – a mandarin-orange-citron hybrid that
looks like a mandarin but is as zesty as a lime.
The result? It’s going to give you more of a hit
than a slice of lime in your glass, yet it boosts
the taste like the real deal.
No. 3 revisited
This one has me slightly baffled. I have tried the No. 3
before, but it arrived in a different bottle – and what’s
inside seems a cut above. Today’s bottle is clear (not
green), still brandishes the stuck-on key and comes with
a bevy of awards – the ‘world’s best’ four times at the
International Spirits Challenge, with the distiller, Dr David
Clutton, described as the “only man to hold a PhD in gin”.
When poured today, I can appreciate its accolades and
know anyone after a classic drop will find this smooth,
uncomplicated and satisfying.