Well, today is the day and I dare to review a bottle of gin again. This may sound a bit irritating now, because I really appreciate a good gin, but of course, it has not been possible to ignore the fact of the sheer endless mass of new appearing juniper distillates we have to deal with since a lot of years. One of these gins is the V-Sinne (German for “five senses”) gin from the Black Forest. (provided test product)*
Therefore, I gave up long ago really recognizing all newly published gins, so I do not know exactly when the first market launch of this gin took place. Since there is no information about it on the manufacturer’s website, I assume that this was not very long ago. I’m predicting the year 2017. And while the name Schwarzwald Dry Gin once was a (at least perceived) unique specimen, it is now even exploited by some discounter chains.
Despite all this, a gin deserves a fair chance, of course, as does the V-Sinne gin. In fact, I was recently raved about this gin at a gin tasting, which made me very curious. Considering only the outward appearance, I like the V-Sinne gin – so let us hope it will come up to expectations. The small and massive bottle with a capacity of 0.5 liters is not particularly large, but very beautifully designed with a nice to look at label. It shows a scene from the Black Forest folklore known as “Hirschsprung im Höllental” (stag jump of hell valley), in which a stag jumped over a wide canyon while fleeing from a hunter.
Be that as it may, for me the content is of particular interest. The manufacturer (the two founders Viktor Svetlov and Johann Buchmüller) informs that the V-Sinne Gin is distilled on column stills, in which in addition to the previous maceration also baskets with botanicals are hung, so that an additional steam infusion takes place. Apropos botanicals: 31 of them find their way into the V-Sinne gin, of which only spruce shoots, blueberries and barberries as well as various citrus fruits are named (juniper must of course be contained). It is finally bottled at 45% vol. The goal should be an intensively aromatic gin that emphasizes both the citrus side and the herbaceous “woody” side of the distillate and thus takes all five senses on a journey to the Black Forest.
Whether the marketing framework of this gin is successful or not is up to you to decide. First, I would like to present my tasting notes here.
Tasting Notes:
Aroma: In fact, the V-Sinne gin meets its own quality standards at least on the nose with excellence. The first impression is extremely intense and aromatic and the word “forest” inevitably comes to my mind first. Juniper, spruce and pine associations, but also a very fruity fresh lemon make up the following wave of impressions. Also berry notes are there, furthermore I find some freshly cut dill.
Taste: Also in terms of taste I can’t deny that this is a really well made dry gin. Very aromatic juniper finds a successful balance to fresh citrus and berry tones. Again pine needles, indeterminable herbal associations from which perhaps also some dill sticks out and a nice bunch of spices (cardamom, a hint of cinnamon).
Finish: dry, but very soft and long-lasting.
In fact, I could now simply write something about possible tonic combinations here (I’d choose the classic Fentimans tonic), but instead I’d like to bring in a cocktail here that’s a kind of variation of the sometimes so-called “Signature Drink of Germany”, the Bombay Crushed. Instead of the kumquats I used limequats (a cross between lime and kumquat), fine white refined sugar, a dash of orange juice and the oil of a broad orange zest. Whether the drink deserves a name of its own is certainly debatable, but since Bombay is clearly associated with another gin brand and the taste of the drink is somewhat different, I simply called it “Crushing your senses“.
Recipe “Crushing your senses”:
6 cl V-Sinne Black Forest Dry Gin
a handful of Limequats
2 Dashes of freshly squeezed orange juice
a broad orange zest
3 bar spoons white refined sugar
Preparation: First halve the limequats and carefully crush them with the sugar and the orange zest in a shaker. Then add the gin and the two spritzers of orange juice and shake vigorously with ice cubes. Pour the entire contents into the pre-cooled glass without straining.
Glass: Tumbler
Garnish: none
Buying sources: At specialized retailers or online, for example at Conalco.
*The bottle for this review was provided to me by the Conalco Spirituosen UG. The fact that this product has been sent to me free of charge for editorial purposes does not – in any way – imply any influence on the content of this article or my rating. On the contrary, it is always an indispensable condition for me to be able to review without any external influence.
