Dram data:
Distillery: Wagging Finger
Bottler: Original bottling
Distilled:Â 2016
Bottled: 2016
Age:Â unaged
Limitation: –
Alcohol: 44%
Tasting notes:
Colour:Â crystal clear (what else…?)
With whisk(e)y prices at an ever-increasing all-time high many whisky drinkers are branching out, on the lookout for so-called malternatives, alternatives to malt whisky. Well, I can’t blame them, even though malt whisky is still my main tipple. But I am a curious mind so I might just as well publish the odd non-whisky review from time to time if I stumble across something interesting. Let me know if that’s something that interests you as well!
The subject of this review is batch #1 of the Wagging Finger gin, by the new Wagging Finger distillery in the Netherlands. Let’s stick our nose in!
The dry nose has a touch of raw (but not unpleasant) alcohol on the first sniff paired with loads of fresh, slightly woody, resiny juniper berries followed by sandalwood, orange oil, mixed flower petals and a very dense, dried herbal mixture as a base – layered and complex. After several minutes lighter citrus notes appear. Dry, layered, fresh and very pleasant. Let’s see if the palate can match that profile. Again, quite a bit of alcohol up front, getting stronger during the first ten seconds before it ebbs off revealing loads of juniper paired with resin, sandalwood, a hint of wormwood, white pepper, mixed green herbs with a hint of sweet petals and a touch of sweetness in the background. All the flavours build upon a very clean base distillate. Dry but not too dry in style and very refreshing. The medium long finish has a surprising amount of sweetness upon swallowing before the rather dry, juniper, herbal, resin notes kick in. Mellowing down nicely with a lot of staying power.
Verdict:
A very nice gin indeed – on the dry side with loads of juniper berries and resin notes, which I like, with a layered complexity of other mixed herbals supporting the spirit. I’m not a big cocktail drinker so I didn’t try to make a G&T but I’m sure it’ll work just fine, there’s lots of power to stand up to tonic water, ice and lemon. On the other hand I have to say it’s a very refreshing gin for the hot days of summer – and I’m writing this in temperatures well over 25°C. Price? About 35€ per bottle. Not cheap for an unaged drink, but I think it’s worth it.
Score:Â About 83-85-ish on a gin scale.
Thanks to Ansgar and Thomas Speller and waggingfinger.com for the sample!