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Which is why it’s so surprising that this gin actually does a fantastic job not only making an appearance, but actually bringing something delicious to the table.
A Rangpur Lime isn’t really a lime. It’s known as a Canton lemon in some parts of the world— but it’s not a lemon either. It’s a hybrid of a mandarin orange and a citron. ( Citrus × limonia). Its flesh is orange, the fruit highly acidic and the flavor is perhaps closer to a citron than any of the above. It’s used in place of a lime in some culinary applications because its high acidity; however, to summarize it’s best simply stated: a Rangpur Lime is truly its own thing. Gin is now definitely a global spirit, with excellent examples being made everywhere from the U.S. to Mexico to Southeast Asia, and even the UK has seen an infusion of new gin distilleries. The best thing about this is that each spirit is an attempt to capture some essence of its geography, often using locally sourced botanicals to flavor what otherwise would essentially be, well, vodka. With so many bottles to choose from, we’ve broken down some of the best gins out there to try now by highlighting stellar examples of the new and old school. Here are some of the best gin brands available now, from traditional London dry to brand-new innovations. In describing flavors of aromas, intimation means “hint” or “indication” thereof. While we know the botanical bill does not include a citrus element, the overall flavor profile contains hints of citrus. As you say, perhaps its the coriander. Or perhaps its the chemistry of distillation where aromatic molecules alike those found in citrus are created. Some species of juniper have limonene in their cones as well—Hence, it’s an intimation of citrus zest— but not an imitation. I know of very few distillers who use coriander to imitate citrus; however, many will use it in concert because of the way it can amplify citrus, or add fruity floral linalool notes to a gin, or to add a spiciness to draw contrast. Coriander has many purposes in gin; however, at least in my professional experience imitation is not one of them. Despite being on the market for over fifteen years, Tanqueray Rangpur Lime Gin endures because the popularity of citrus-forward gins has remained high. Overall, while it loses marks for balance, it’s a solid mixing gin for fans of citrus-forward gin. New Western Gin: This is really a catch-all term for newer gins that don’t fit into the previous categories. But the through line is that these gins, while still using juniper as a key ingredient, are flavored with a wide range of botanicals, and often use ones that are grown locally to showcase the flavors of where they are made. Today the brand is distilled at the massive Cameronbridge Distillery in Scotland and owned by Diageo. In Europe you’ll find it bottled at 43.1% ABV; in the US it’s a more assertive (and superior taste-wise in my opinion, especially for mixing) 47.3% ABV. In contrast the other gins, the botanicals are distilled immediately and not macerated prior. Secondly, it also does not use a concentrated botanical distillation which is diluted with neutral spirit after distillation. The botanical strength of the distillate is the botanical strength of the gin. Tasting Notes
It feels like, with the added ice, there’s a touch of bitterness that has crept into the mix. I feel like it’s either the Rangpur lime or the ginger root being a little too loud, and the licorice has been attenuated to the point where it just can’t balance things out that well anymore. Otherwise the flavors are all still on point and delicious, just with that one caveat. Fizz (Tom Collins) Flavor: The palate begins with juniper, but finishes with rich hints of baking spice including angelica root, cinnamon and coriander seed. The finish on the palate captures angelica/coriander in a way that suggests that top note of Bombay Sapphire to me. Finish: Only slightly dry with sour citrus remaining dominant, although above a spice-led accord that feels distinctively Tanqueray like. Tanqueray Rangpur Lime Gin launched in 2006. At the time, it was a bit of a bold and unusual move. Signature botanicals gin were rare. Gins that higlighted unusual botanicals in their name were even rarer.That clementine orange flavor is the first thing that passes your lips as well and seems to last pretty much the entire length of the flavor profile, laying a good foundation for the other flavors. Immediately following it is a slight burst of bright lime zest and then some pine needles for the juniper. As the flavor develops the ginger root comes into focus and adds some spicy or tangy characteristics to the spirit, and that tangy ginger and clementine combination is what lingers on the finish. Usually, when we add a bit of ice the flavors take a nosedive. That’s especially true in spirits like a gin, where the flavors are infused during distillation and tend to be a little bit more delicate than usual. In this case, fortunately for us, I think they have all mostly survived — with one notable change. There’s already a good difference here — in Tanqueray’s standard version, the first aroma I got was a big burst of juniper, but in this version that isn’t the case. I still can smell some pine needles in there, but the predominant components are some clementine orange citrus and ginger front and center. It almost smells like a gin & tonic with a lime wedge. Another example of where I think the gin has been superseded is in the Martini. It’s a little heavy-handed and some of he duller ethanol notes on the finish make for an acceptable, but ultimately underwhelming drink. I recommend Tanqueray 10 instead.
Edward did not live long enough to see the business take off, but Charles continued alone and eventually hit on a winning flavor combination for their gin by using just four ingredients: juniper, angelica root, liquorice and coriander seeds. Charles subsequently died in 1865 leaving the business to his son, who decided to merge with Alexander Gordon & Co (another gin producer) to better compete with the wave of gin distilleries popping up all over London. The two companies split their focus: Gordon’s Gin aimed at domestic tastes in London, and Tanqueray focused on the export market (specifically, the United States). With such long lasting success (and it’s still among the top 6 selling gins worldwide) comes some of the perils of being seen as “default.” In recent years, Tanqueray has marketed their flagship gin as something of a hyrbid of “prestige brand” (bringing it in competition with Tanqueray’s high end Tanqueray No. 10 Gin) and a “party with your friends gin.”Bartenders would be advised to treat Tanqueray Rangpur Lime Gin as a specialty citrus-forward gin. Mixed, its citrus profile complements fresh citrus quite well. Try it in a Gimlet, Tom Collins or an Evans style Gin and Tonic. In describing the flavor of some gins we often use metaphor. While some are obvious, like the tasting note “lemon curd.” We all know there’s no lemon curd in a gin. Other tasting notes often get misinterpreted. One time I reviewed a gin and said there was a strong licorice flavor. The distiller was outraged. “There’s no licorice in here!” But alike when a sommelier might say that a Riesling invokes “stone fruit,” when reviewing a gin I sometimes have to use botanicals that are not present in the gin to describe the impression a gin invokes. The flavor can contain notes of licorice without the gin itself containing licorice. I like that, with this version of their gin, the folks at Tanqueray went with the clear glass. Their normal bottle sports a green colored glass bottle which is stylish and interesting, but in this case I feel like it might have been a bit confusing and offputting for folks. With a standard gin you expect it to be crystal clear, but with this variant there might be a question about whether it was actually colored green in addition to the lime flavor. The clear glass removes all doubt. It’s at this point that the Tanqueray process diverges from the traditional gin distilleries. Some folks believe that leaving the botanicals to rest in the spirit over a longer period of time will improve the flavor. The folks at Tanqueray don’t agree and immediately add water and begin re-distilling the spirit into gin in their copper pot stills. Tanqueray also uses a one-shot distilling method in which all of the components are distilled together, rather than individually distilling each ingredient and blending together later. London Dry Gin: The old guard brands mostly distill London Dry-style gin in the UK, although it does not actually have a geographical indicator. The main rules of this designation are that juniper must be the dominant flavor (as it is for all gin) and botanicals must flavor the gin during distillation, with no flavor or color added afterwards. Brands like Beefeater and Tanqueray are classics for a reason, but the world of gin has expanded enormously over the past 20 years as new distilleries tinker with the formula.
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