Citadelle Reserve Gin 70cl

Citadelle Reserve Gin is barrel-aged to create unique depth and flavour, a rare process for a gin, but nonetheless one that is well-deserved for the complex list of herbs, spices, and botanicals that goes into making it. Aged gin is not a new concept—before gin could be transported in plastic, glass, or stainless steel, it was brought over in wooden barrels, giving it a chance to take on the colour and flavour of the wood in much the same way as a whisky or cognac. But in 2008, Cognac Ferrand’s cellar master Alexandre Gabriel revisited this grand tradition and ushered in a new age of aged gins. To give Citadelle Reserve Gin an even more unique spin, he added three unique botanicals—yuzu, genepi, and bleuet. The solera ageing process, similar to that of sherry, sees the gin rest in five different types of wood for five months, including cherry, acacia, mulberry, chestnut, and French oak. After five months, the Citadelle Reserve Gin is blended together and refined in a huge barrel of its own, a step that earns Citadelle the distinction of being the only distillers to use such an avant-garde technique. This long, elaborate ageing process gives the gin a whole new flavour profile, intensifying the citrus notes and bringing about a noticeably soft mouthfeel. Naturally, you couldn’t just throw some Citadelle Reserve Gin into a glass with some ice and tonic—this one needs to be savoured without any adulteration—sip on the rocks, or take as one terrific martini.

• Citadelle Reserve Gin is aged using five different types of wood, in a process similar to the making of sherry
• On the nose, it’s herbaceous, with notes of dried spices, tobacco, and orange flower, alongside the obvious juniper, as well as green tea; on the palate, it’s spicy and peppery, with prominent notes of citrus, lemon, ginger and almond
• Perfect for a martini