Christian Drouin Le Gin Recipe

Crack and measure

Gently crack the juniper berries using a mortar and pestle or by pressing them lightly with a rolling pin; avoid pulverizing. Weigh and prepare all dried botanicals and citrus peels. Remove pith from citrus peels to prevent bitterness.

Combine 1.5 L of neutral grain spirit with the cracked juniper, coriander seeds, angelica root, orris root, licorice root, and dried bitter orange peel in a large glass or stainless steel container with airtight lid. Add the fresh citrus peels, dried lavender and optional applewood-smoked chips to the same vessel.

Seal the container and macerate at cool room temperature (18–22°C) for 24–48 hours, gently swirling the container once or twice daily. Taste test by diluting a small sample 1:3 with water to check extraction: you should have a strong juniper backbone with citrus lift and a floral note but not heavy bitterness.

After maceration, strain the spirit through a fine mesh sieve lined with cheesecloth into the still to remove solids. Press gently on solids to extract liquid but avoid pulp that can cloud the spirit.

Fill your pot still with the strained macerate, leaving appropriate headspace per your still manufacturer’s instructions. Bring the still up slowly to allow volatile citrus and floral top notes to come over first.

Collect distillate in three rough fractions: heads (first 1–3% of the total volume — discard or set aside for redistillation), hearts (the desired portion — collect until tasting indicates vegetal or bitter tail notes are beginning), and tails (later fraction — stop collecting when solvent-like or oily notes appear). For a batch this size expect approximately 500–650 ml of hearts at c. 65–85% ABV depending on equipment and cuts. Use sensory judgment: hearts should be clean, juniper-forward with balanced citrus and floral notes.

Measure the strength of the collected hearts with an alcoholmeter or digital hydrometer. Slowly add cold filtered water to bring the spirit down to target bottling strength (typically 40–46% ABV). For this recipe, aim for 43% ABV: calculate dilution volume, then add roughly 400 ml of cold filtered water while stirring gently.

If using pear concentrate or a small amount of pear eau-de-vie, add up to 50 ml to the blended gin now to impart a subtle fruit note reminiscent of Christian Drouin's pear influence. Stir gently and rest for 24–48 hours to allow integration.

If desired, polish the gin by filtering through a small amount (1 tsp) of food-grade activated charcoal placed in a funnel with a layer of cotton or paper filter; this can soften any harsh edges. Filter slowly and discard the charcoal. Note: charcoal will remove some aroma — use sparingly and taste at intervals.

Bottle into sterilized bottles. Label and rest gin for at least 1 week to harmonize flavors; optimal flavor develops over 2–4 weeks. Store in a cool, dark place.

Expected yield: about 900–1000 ml of finished gin at 43% ABV (depending on distillation cut and losses). Tasting profile: prominent juniper backbone, bright citrus top notes (lemon, orange, grapefruit), soft floral lift from lavender and orris, slight sweetness/roundness from licorice and optional pear addition, and a dry, balanced finish.