By
George Brozowski
Who
ever heard of Hendrick's Gin? Even the infinitesimal PR piece
attached to the neck of the squat dark brown apothecary style
bottle says it is only loved by a tiny handful of all the
people in the world. They even tout the fact that this hooch
is preferred by only 1 out of 1000 gin drinkers. They further
warn that it is a gin made oddly and is most unusual and not
for everybody. What in the hell was I getting into? Well,
turns out I was getting into the best damn gin on the planet,
that's what!!
Humphrey
Bogart said it best in Casablanca. "Of all the gin joints
in all the towns in all the world, she walks into mine."
Boy, am I ever thrilled this Gin walked into my joint. Superlatives
don't do this Gin justice. It is so far beyond good that new
words need to be made up to describe it. This is simply the
best spirit I have tasted in over a year.
If
you should happen to visit their web site, which is also one
of the more interesting on the web, you come to realize that
his stuff is produced by strange and odd little people with
intense gazes and thick accents who have run away from Monty
Python's Circus because it was too tame to contain their insanity.
The
magical mystery tour starts with two antique stills that can
be found in only a handful of places on the entire planet
and only together in this secret place tethered 6 miles above
the earth by the most intricate hot air balloons that were
ever crafted over a century ago.
The
Eau De Vie is produced by an 1860 Bennet still and a 1948
Carter Head still (1 of only 4 left in the world). These stills
are heated by domesticated Scottish fire breathing dragons
cloned from ancient remains found in the area. The spirits
are skillfully married up there in the heavens and then stored
in barrels deep below the earth. They only produce a miniscule
450 liters per batch because the fairies are incapable of
lifting heavier loads.
But
it's really not so much how they do it, even though they do
it quite remarkably, it's what they put into it. This "most
iconoclastic Gin" is devised from an ancient secret recipe
that was wrestled away from a one eyed ogre at the cost of
dozens of lives. Among the many flowers, roots, herbs and
seeds the primary ingredient is of course Juniper but the
next two are quite surprising and rumored to have been first
introduced to the blend by THE Merlin of old. Only an ancient
and wizened wizard could have thought of adding Bulgarian
rose petals and cucumbers to the blend. I kid you not, rose
petals and cucumbers give this Gin a taste like no other anywhere
in this solar system.
When
I pulled the cork out of the bottle my nose was assailed by
its extraordinary perfume. Now I know how Coco Chanel must
have felt when she first got a whiff of her famous #5 perfume.
Hendricks Gin has far more perfume than any
other common gin, a mighty nose forwarded by Juniper and closely
followed by flowery roses, earthy green cucumber, coriander,
witch hazel, cinnamon and so much more. I wanted to bathe
in its smell. I wanted someone to massage it into my entire
body. Right then and there I knew I was in for a very, very
special treat.
Having
floated up to the ceiling during the process of being swept
away by the awesome aromas that seemed to fill the entire
room, I managed to climb back down to the floor and the bottle
and actually pour some into a glass. My mouth was instantly
transported back to my Aunt Bea's flower garden, the one just
behind her house and next to the Mississippi River and we
were celebrating the 4th of July. It was a splendid hot and
humid and sunny afternoon just after a sudden but very brief
downpour had ionized the air and crystallized and sharpened
all the sights and smells of the garden and the river. This
Gin possesses a medium to light body and reveals an aromatic
blend of spices and floral scents with a mild tingling on
the lips and tongue. It provides a slight warming embrace
on the way down leaving a lingering finish of floral and citrus
notes with the crisp yet odd brightness of cucumber.
It
made one hell of a martini! Of course, I don't put Vermouth
in my martinis be they Gin or Vodka. At the instance of the
gnome with the cleft palate I sliced a cucumber for the garnish
and was astonished at how well it complimented this martini.
I should have poured the gnome his own drink because with
that cleft palate he spilled half of my martini all over himself
and the floor and the place began taking on the smell of a
true Gin joint. However, thanks to this stuff, it smelled
like a high class Gin joint.
Gin
and tonic is one of my favorite summer drinks but up to this
point I hadn't realized just how wonderful and refreshing
they could really be. Hendricks makes the best Gin and tonic
I have ever tasted. There I was back at Aunt Bea's garden
swaying back and forth in a hammock between two huge weeping
willow trees with my Gin and tonic in hand.
If
I could just get that damn gnome to be a bit less enthusiastic
pushing me this would be perfect. By the by, spend the extra
quarter and get the best tonic you can, it will be worth every
penny. And while you're at it get a cucumber or two.
So
the bottom line, what does all this joy cost? That's the real
magic of this story, it's only around $30.00/750ml bottle.
So jump on your sturdy steed, gallop over to the nearest apothecary
that carries Hendricks, slay the evil black night at the door,
grab a bottle from the dusty shelf and pay the gorgeous serving
wench and have her place it in a bag and then club her over
the head and drag her back out to your steed and take her
to your castle and serve her some Hendricks Gin and she will
forgive you and marry you and you will live happily ever after
and have many children. Just watch out for that damn gnome.
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