Blackwater Distillery Gin Tasting Evening- review

This month, 57 The Headline played host to some of Dublin’s most devout gin-lovers for Blackwater Distillery’s intimate tasting of several premium products. The event, organised by Dublin Loves Gin, is part of a series of monthly get-togethers in the Clanbrassil St. bar, providing a space to sample, learn and chat about gin. The tasting brings us home with a through-and-through Irish brand, Blackwater Distillery, showing exactly the sort of thing this nation has to offer in our ever expanding distilling and brewing industries.

The private upstairs bar of The Headline provided a simple, sophisticated setting for the twenty-or-so enthusiasts in attendance. A tastefully laid out array of garnishes, from apple to thyme, adorn our table-tops. For the less experienced tasters, it was explained that gin is a predominantly juniper flavoured spirit. We are invited to sample the classically named No. 5 Small Batch, London Dry Gin. Aromatic and citrusy, this gin is smooth enough to be sipped straight with just a cube of ice. The suggested tonic is Fever Tree Light and, garnished with a slice of lime, I admit, the experience is immediately enhanced to create one of the most refreshing G&Ts on the market.

The next two products, Wexford Strawberry and Juniper Cask Gin, take us in opposite directions. Although the former is appealing to the eye as a fruity summer product, rose coloured with a strawberry, black pepper and basil garnish, it fails to achieve the standard Blackwater have already mastered with the No. 5. Small Batch. The Juniper Cask, however, is robust with fortified juniper flavour and described as “a late night-drink poured over ice” – the whiskey of gins, if you will. The final sample is an exclusive tasting of Boyle’s Gin. Set for release in November and named after alchemist Robert Boyle of Lismore Castle. Not quite magical, but fresh and flavourful all the same. When served with apple and tonic, it does make quite the final treat. At €20 for the event, with the four drinks included, value isn’t an issue – and, in the presence of an engaged and excited audience, learning about an impressively expanding brand is priceless.

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