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The Hill Country is full of natural flavors. Native pecans, rustic lavender, juniper ash, the landscape is brimming with botanical inspiration. For spirits entrepreneur Daniel Barnes, CEO and founder of Treaty Oak Distilling, these Texan ingredients are added to gin. In 2012, Treaty Oak released Waterloo No. 9 Gin, the first Texas gin to hit the market. Back then, people thought the idea of Texas gin was a little strange, Barnes recalls. But he had a clear vision for the future of spirits in the state. “From the start, we wanted to showcase our specific corner of the world,” he says. “The gin was important to us because it allowed us to show a sense of belonging by using what grows naturally here.”
Waterloo is no longer alone in the Texas gin market. Today, the category has expanded to include more than seventy producers across the state, and bartenders are starting to stock up on locally produced gin. The state’s offerings include everything from elegant sipping gins to spicy cocktail basics. Almost a decade after the launch of Waterloo, Texas has upped its gin game.
Basically, gin is simply a neutral alcohol that has been flavored with a specific herbal recipe (herbs, roots and citrus). By definition, juniper berries should be part of this recipe – they give the gin its signature flavor. To create the unique flavor of an individual brand of gin, producers craft the basic recipe with plants such as angelica root, cilantro, orris root, and rose hips. Some Texas growers, like Treaty Oak, Houston’s Fox and researcher, and WildJune, be sure to use Texas-grown ingredients like citrus, lavender, rosemary, and red juniper in their recipes.
There are several ways to make gin. Producers like Blanco Real spirits create the base alcohol internally by fermenting a grain mixture called “wort”, which is then distilled. Others simply cut out this first step by purchasing a base spirit from another producer, as is the case with Waterloo or Old Highborn gins. Botanicals can be steeped in the base alcohol for a period of time to impart a natural flavor; they can also be more subtly infused with plant vapors, almost like brewed tea, allowing botanical essential oils to become incorporated into the finished alcohol. Some distillers, like the one in San Antonio Southern Style Seersucker Gin, choose to steep one gin, steep another and mix the resulting spirits, creating a compound gin.
In the course of world history, Texas lags behind in the gin game. The spirit was first used as a medieval medicinal tonic by the Dutch as early as the 13th century. It eventually gained popularity among the British, and by the early 18th century it had become the “prevalent social drug of the time” among the lower economic classes, according to Tristan Stephenson, author of The Curious Barman’s Gin Palace. In the late 19th century and until Prohibition, it became one of the most popular staple spirits for cocktails in some of the world’s most glitzy hotel bars, thanks to its role in classic recipes. like the tendril, the French 75, and the martini.
Today, gin is one of the essential staple spirits for a whole range of classic and modern cocktails. According to Statista market data, US gin sales are estimated at $ 2.46 million so far in 2021 and are expected to grow 7.7% annually through 2025. While The Texas beverage industry continues to innovate, it’s a safe bet we will see continued growth in the gin industry statewide.
Among artisan bartenders, gin is often touted as one of the most versatile spirits. “Gin is a category I love because it provides the perfect setting for experimentation,” says Jessica Sanders, owner of Austin Drink.Well bar. “Depending on the season, you can play with different botanical blends from different brands. The gins that I like to use in the summer can pair better with lemon and lime, while the ones I like to use in the winter are better for creating cocktails that would have grapefruit as a citrus component.
And while some gins serve as a tasty springboard, other gins are designed to be stand-alone. “Some brands of gin are so complex in their flavor profile that you can make simple cocktails without really thinking about it,” says Robert Björn Taylor, Austin-based beverage consultant. “Your classic Tanqueray London Dry is delicious enough to be enjoyed in a clean martini, while the tang of Bombay Sapphire can be enjoyed with tonic water. ”
Since opening Drink.Well in 2012, Sanders has watched the steady progression of new Texan gins come into the market, with most of them priced at a premium that makes it difficult to achieve high volume sales from of a bar well. “You really had to weigh the pros and cons to sell a guest an expensive cocktail with a Texas brand he had never heard of,” says Sanders.
Next, enterprising producer Mike Groener created a Texas gin, Old Highborn, to simplify the calculations for bar managers. Groener, the owner of Genius Liquids in Austin, had previously produced a few selections of gin. But in 2015, he introduced Old Highborn, a London dry gin with crisp citrus notes, to fill the gap in affordable Texas-made gin. “We really wanted to find a way to get an elegant gin in bars that was versatile enough to work in a variety of cocktails, but also at a reasonable price,” says Groener. “We figured out what that price would be and figured out how to get back to it. “
These days, it’s not uncommon to see Old Highborn as the standard well gin at a Texas bar, and a wider variety of other Texas gins such as Waterloo, Genius, and Real Spirits are top picks. range in bars across the state.
Bar managers like Houston’s Alex Negranza March are regularly on the lookout for other Texas gins that really wow them. On a recent search mission to taste a sample of local gins, Negranza was stuck by Still Austin’s prowess American Gin, a particularly spicy gin made with a high percentage of rye in the base alcohol.
“This gin has been a real success for me. I was impressed with the ever-present taste and aroma of juniper, which can often be lost with more modern American gins, ”says Negranza. “This gin is delicate enough for a gin and soda with a simple twist of a Texas-grown grapefruit, but it packs enough punch to make it into a martini.” It’s a delicious gin that just happens to be made in Texas.
Fortunately for Texans, this compliment can be applied to a multitude of local gins. Here are a handful of highlights to look for:
Austin Reserve
Austin
This small-batch artisanal gin is made from a corn base, which gives it a silky smooth mouth feel. The botanical blend of juniper, rosemary, lavender, and lemongrass shines through, with a grassy mid-palate followed by grapefruit and pepper. It’s a refreshing gin to sip on its own, but also perfect for a dry martini with a lemon twist.
Blackland Distillery Gin
Fort worth
This elegant gin is as pretty on the palate as its riveted glass bottle is at the bar. Made from 100 percent winter wheat, this gin offers a smooth, sweet palate with notes of grapefruit peel, chamomile and anise. It is an excellent base for making citrus gin and tonic.
Traditional Dripping Springs Gin
dripping springs
This is the second gin from one of the state’s premier vodka producers, San Luis Spirits. The company launched its first gin, Artisan Gin, in 2014, and followed it in 2016 with that more muscular sibling, namely: higher alcohol content. It’s made in a classic London dry style, and the juniper flavor takes over, followed by lemon zest, pepper and anise. The peppery finish will add a nice punch to the average G&T – add a squeeze of lemon rather than lime.
Fox & Seeker London Dry Gin
Houston
A recent addition to the Texas gin scene, this Houston-based brand benefits from a solid grain-to-glass process, making a basic vodka from Texas-grown corn and winter wheat that smells like vanilla. and orange zest. This serves as the basis for the flagship product London Dry, which is rich in spicy juniper, lemon zest and angelica root.
Old Highborn
Bastrop
Ask your local bartender about Old Highborn. This crunchy, earthy gin was designed to be a workhorse for bar wells across the state, providing an affordable Texas-made option for crafty cocktails. Offering subtle notes of tea, cinnamon, herbs and orange peel, this gin is flavorful, but has wide appeal to create a wide range of libations.
Real spirits gin
Blanco
From the same producers of Real Ale beers, Real Spirits extends the all-natural concept to distillation. In a unique twist, Real Spirits first uses its recipe for Belgian-inspired Real Ale white wheat beer – hops-only – to make the base alcohol. This unusual gin offers a wider mouth feel, with notes of orris root, grapefruit, lemon and lavender followed by the sweet minty flavors of the bottle brush. This muscular spirit pairs perfectly with the sweet and bitter orange flavors of a Negroni.
Southern Style Seersucker Gin
San Antonio
From the San Antonio-based Seersucker Distillery, this dry London style is one of four Southern inspired offerings. Using an alcohol made from corn, this gin offers notes of mint and honey, which cross the palate with lemon zest and pepper.
Always Austin American Gin
Austin
This urban distillery is first and foremost a whiskey producer, but while waiting for its artisanal bourbons to age, the owners set out to make a gin that whiskey lovers could catch up on. Made from a homemade rye alcohol, the gin offers a distinctive rustic spice along with notes of allspice, cinnamon, elderflower and lemon marrow.
Gin Waterloo n ° 9
dripping springs
Today, Texas gin pioneer Treaty Oak offers three distinct gins, each featuring herbs from Texas: flagship # 9, with lavender, pecans and grapefruit; Old Yaupon Gin, a sweeter Old Tom style with Texas Yaupon berries and wildflower honey; and the spicy, barrel-aged Antique Gin, aged like bourbon, with notes of cinnamon, vanilla and lavender cream.
