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Plymouth Gin made in Plymouth, England is bottled at 82 proof/41.2% abv and is distilled in the Black Friars Distillery, the oldest working distillery in England. The name and style are protected and Plymouth is the only brand that can call itself a Plymouth style gin. I think that Plymouth is one of the best gins out there. I am usually into aromatic gins full of big botanicals and juniper, Plymouth doesn't have that great, big slam of some other gins but is light, exceptionally smooth, creamy, and subtle with little bite. Probably in part due to the extremely soft Dartmouth water used in the distillation process. It has a hint of sweetness and the seven botanicals give it a fruity note with a big aroma, but it's also crisp and dry. It's hard to describe, but very nice. It's what I consider to have the classic gin taste. Interestingly enough Plymouth is the gin specified in the original dry martini. Plymouth also makes a higher strength version at 114 proof/57% abv called "Navy Strength" as well as some other products but I haven't tried them yet.
As a side note: I originally heard about this gin in John H. McDonald's mystery books on Travis McGee where Travis the hero is known to have ice cold mugs of Plymouth on the rocks as the way to end a perfect day. After the fabulous description I had to search Plymouth out to try it and I recommend McDonald's excellent books as much as I do Plymouth gin.
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11-05-2006 @7:57PM Spitzmaus said... A blessing on your head, Jonathan! This is the one!! Plymouth is my perdurable favorite English dry gin; trusted, true, historically proven, it's the go-to gin in this house and always will be. Like you, I first heard of Plymouth in a Travis McGee mystery (this was in graduate school) -- and I've never looked back. Trendy gins come and go; Plymouth outlasts them all.
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11-05-2006 @8:42PM Rick Dobbs said... This gin is great for making homemade cucumber gin as well. Just de-seed the cucumbers and cut into french fry sized pieces, then put it all in a watertight container for a day or two. Strain and you got a kickass Cucumber Gin!
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11-06-2006 @12:07PM Matt Hearn said... Well said, my friend. I had Plymouth while on a short tour of southwest England a few summers ago and loved it (a bit too much, I think; much of the trip is a blur), but haven't had much luck finding it on our side of the pond. I had assumed no one had bothered to import it, but since they are I will redouble my efforts to find it!
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11-06-2006 @3:09PM Carol Cachey said... My recollection is that Travis drank Boodles.
Carol- I have all the Travis books and if I remember right he started out with Plymouth but he switched to Boodles, and an occasional beer.
Here's why in a quote from The Dreadful Lemon Sky- "At drinking time I left Meyer at the wheel and went below and broke out the very last bottle of the Plymouth gin which had been bottled in the United Kingdom. All the others were bottled in the U.S. Gin People, it isn't the same. It's still a pretty good gin but it is not a superb, stingingly dry, and lovely gin. The sailer on the label no longer looks staunch and forthright, but merely hokey. There is something self-destructive about Western technology and distribution. Whenever a consumer object is so excellent that it attracts a devoted following, some of the slide rule and computer types come in on their twinkle toes and take over the store, and in a trice they figure out just how far they can cut quality and still increase market penetration. Their reasoning is that it is idiotic to make and sell a hundred thousand units of something and make a profit of thirty cents a unit, when you can increase the advertising, sell five million units, and make a nickel profit a unit. Thus the very good things of the world go down the drain, from honest turkey to honest eggs to honest tomatoes. And gin." The Dreadful Lemon Sky © 1974 John D. MacDonald
And here's how he likes it best- fill an old fashioned glass to the two-thirds line with cracked ice. Slosh dry sherry into glass. Swiftly, with strainer across top of glass, dump the sherry. Fill to the ice level with Plymouth Gin (imported). Rub lemon peel around inside of rim, pinch some floating beads of citrus oil on the surface of the drink. Throw away the peel.
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11-06-2006 @3:31PM Spitzmaus said... Matt, Plymouth *is* available on this side of the pond although you might have to do a bit of searching to find it. I suggest you call around; try the "upscale" liquor stores, yes, but don't forget supermarkets; in my neck of the woods, I can usually find Plymouth at Safeway. Some years ago (the early '90s, I believe), there was an issue with the distillery and hence the distribution channel. It's my understanding the company almost went bankrupt before new owners took over and gave the gin a well-deserved comeback.
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