Spanish or Mediterranean-style gin has become a bit of a trend lately, but the newly introduced Nordés Gin stands out for a few reasons. The gin, which hails from Spain’s northwestern province of Galicia, is made with alcohol distilled from the Albariño wine grape rather than grain. It’s infused with 11 botanicals, including bay laurel, lemon verbena, eucalyptus, and perhaps most interestingly, the salt marsh plant salicornia.
Its nose is sweet, floral, and soft with touches of mint and patchouli; overall, it’s much more potpourri than pepper. The gin is soft on the palate with a profoundly perfumed taste that matches high florality to a remarkable but not unpleasant soapy sweetness. In particular, the palate is characterized by mint and patchouli up top with hibiscus, ginger tea, and lemon verbena emerging close to the back, where it’s cut with a slight touch of juniper at the gently spiced finish.
Considering its moderate ABV and softer character, I felt that it might be swallowed up whole in a Gin & Tonic. However, I was pleasantly surprised to find that wasn’t the case—no, you’re not getting the juniper spice bite, but you are getting an equally potent shot of Nordés’s intense, perfumey floral notes with finishing touches of ginger.
This is a floral gin with a capital “F,” and perhaps the furthest you can stray from the traditional experience of a London Dry. Naturally, I wouldn’t consider using it in a Martini, but that’s not the point. Nordés Gin marches to the tune of its drummer, and if you partake, you better follow its lead.
★★★
Stats:
–40% ABV
–$40
