Whitley Neill Original Handcrafted Dry Gin

When it comes to Gin, premium botanicals, and heritage matter… and Whitley Neill Dry Gin has it all (and superior quality to boot).

John James Whitley Neill comes from a family of eight generation of distillers, and he is a direct descendant of Thomas Greenall. If you are reading this from just about anywhere in the UK, you might instantly recognize that the Greenall name has been associated with distilling in England — Gin in particular — for 250 years. As a child, he happened upon a cache of bottles in his Grandmother’s storage, all full and breaking labels with the family name. This experience inspired him to take up the family tradition.

All Whitley Neill Spirits are distiller in a single, small-format, 100-year-old, copper-pot still… the oldest still in operation in the UK. They shun the "continuous distillation" process that ramps up volume, choosing to start and finish one batch at a time. Quite impressive. Currently, this small-batch, craft distillery has only one product, Whitley Neill Dry Gin, and quite a product it is, too.

Young Johnny went to Africa, where he met his future bride. Not only did he bring her back to London (smart man), but he brought back a few signature Africa botanicals that makes his Dry Gin unlike any other. Sure… it has juniper berries — would hardly be Gin without them, right? And there are few others that Gin-lovers will recognize as well, including lemon and orange peel from Spain, Angelica Root from France, Cassia bark from China, and Russian Coriander seed. But there are three more that really make a difference here.

The first is Florentine Iris root from Italy. Whitley believes that it softens the aroma and balances the sharpness of the citrus… and who am I to argue. But it is the African components that make this drinker a stand-out. Baobab fruit and Cape Goosebery — both from South Africa — seem to add a subtly exotic, yet familiar fruitiness along with an interesting light golden hue… almost like thin champaign.