A gin can stand out for many reasons, from unique botanicals used to the background story that led to the creation of the gin, however no one can deny the importance that a bottle plays in the marketing of any gin.

When I first saw the design of Cotton Gin’s bottle, I knew that time and effort had gone into its design. This generally tells me that effort has also gone into the product held within the bottle – the gin itself!

The design for Cotton Gin was hand drawn by Nicola at Otterbeck Distillery, who was inspired by the cotton mill that houses the still used to produce Cotton Gin. Looking at the finished article, it would definitely stand out on any gin shelf.

Within the old cotton mill, alongside the River Aire in Skipton, Yorkshire stands Eliza, a hand engineered four hundred and fifty litre still. Eliza is blessed with an extra aroma chamber, which Nicola goes on to tell me, makes their gin smoother and creamier.

The team at Otterbeck worked alongside Master Distiller Jamie Baxter and also brought in the help of good friend and tv chef James Martin. I can tell how passionate they are about their product and it makes me excited to give it a try.

Pulling out the little wooden stopper, I notice a hint of pine or eucalyptus coming through with the juniper and on pouring and tasting neat I am pleasantly surprised.

The botanicals are definitely announced in this gin, with the spruce clearly evident. With a full mouth feel it is incredibly smooth and flavoursome with a long spicy finish and at 44% proof has very little alcohol burn at all, which makes it great for sipping.

Being a herbaceous gin, I decided to combine it with a Mediterranean Tonic

Mixing 50ml of gin with 100ml of Mediterranean Fever-Tree and Garnished with some fresh Rosemary it created a wonderful warm and fragrant G&T, with the spicy coriander finish giving it extra complexity.

With so many gins on the market, its getting more and more difficult to find something that stands out.

I do love spice in my gin and I’m a big fan of herbaceous gins, so this is a real winner for me. The flavour is not lost one bit amongst the tonic, it sings in harmony with it and is just what a good G&T should be – refreshing yet full of flavour.

Cotton gin is available to buy directly from Otterbeck Distillery

Disclaimer

Cotton Gin was sent to me as a sample to try and to review. The thoughts and opinions within this post are solely those of Manchester Food Tourist and are honest and impartial