Style: Schwarzwald dry gin
Proof: 94 (47% ABV)
Region: Black Forest, Germany

For our first gin review, we’re tackling a very special bottle that comes directly from Germany’s fabled Black Forest. The Distiller’s Cut from Monkey 47 is a limited special release that sees the Monkey 47 team adding a new ingredient to their bespoke concoction of 47 different botanicals.

The latest release sees the addition of galium odoratum – better known as the woodruff plant. Woodruff grows all over Europe and is native to the Black Forest where Monkey 47 forages for the plants used in distilling their gin. Let’s see if this complex gin is greater than the sum of its parts.

Tasting notes

With so many botanicals contributing to the flavor profile of this gin, it’s a bit difficult to parse everything. The nose is dense with notes of citrus peel, juniper, spruce, and sage. On the palate, this gin is surprisingly sweet with a vanilla-forward taste that’s bolstered a bit by baking spice.

The real meat of this gin is the combination of pine, juniper, sage, and coriander that evoke the aromas of stumbling through an overgrown copse and disturbing the underbrush, or tasting herbs fresh from the garden. It’s fragrant and earthy while simultaneously being bright, fresh, and sweet.

Final thoughts

This edition of Monkey 47 Distiller’s Cut does not disappoint. It’s complex and balanced enough to sip neat. It also works beautifully in gin-forward cocktails where herbal and floral notes are front and center – try it paired with Yellow Chartreuse in an Alaska cocktail. It’s dense, complex and deep, and completely evocative of walking through an untouched, ancient forest.