Americans are rediscovering gin, said Robert Plotkin in the Wine Enthusiast. Tired of vodka’s “carnival-like parade of flavors,” they’re returning to traditional gins and discovering new ones. A guide to the best:
Plymouth English Gin
The “Chanel No. 5” of gins. An exuberant juniper bouquet.
Hendrick’s
This Scottish import is flavored with rose petals, cucumber, juniper, and coriander.
Beefeater London Dry Gin
Exquisitely dry, and bottled “at a lip-tingling 94 proof.”
Cadenhead’s Old Raj
This 110-proof spirit includes saffron, which lends a “citrus and spice bouquet.”
Whitley Neill London Dry Gin
Bold African flavors of wild gooseberries and the orange-like fruit of the baobab tree.
Junipero Gin
From Anchor Steam brewery in San Francisco. Smooth, “magnificently dry,” and an exceptionally high 98.6 proof.