Reisetbauer Blue Gin Vintage '06 is 43% abv. / 86 proof and is made by Hans Reisetbauer, the renowned, premier Austrian distiller of fine eau de vie. Don't let the name or the photo fool you, because to the eye this gin is crystal clear. The gin starts with wheat and corn used in making the base distillate and then over twenty premium botanicals sourced from more than ten countries are used, including Egypt, China, Spain, Indonesia, Macedonia, The Netherlands, Romania, Turkey, USA, and Vietnam. The aroma is strongly spicy that starts sharp and then follows with warm floral notes that are incredibly complex but very clean. It's a pleasure to inhale the smell of this gin.
I see why the gin is called Blue since the aroma definitely brings to mind a certain blueness, like that of a clear blue sky on a crisp autumn day, right after the night of a major storm.
The taste starts sharp and full of botanicals, very complex, with a plethora of spices and floral components that smoothes out and finishes strong. I find it difficult to pull out any of the essences of the individual botanicals, but with so many that isn't unusual, and they blend together into a harmonious whole. This is an excellent gin that is as pleasurable to drink as it is to smell.
It isn't easy to find Reisetbauer Blue Gin in the US since it is imported in extremely limited quantities, but I found it available at www.DrinkUpNy.com for $39, if you place an order for over $50 they ship for free.
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Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
11-07-2007 @ 1:55PM
Beany said...
A tiny niggle- 'Blue' and 'crystal clear' are not mutually exclusive. When I studied chemistry, I was taught to be very careful about describing appearance of liquids- specifying clear, hazy, cloudy, milky etc., as well as the colour (or colourless). Water is clear & colourless or 'water-white', as is every gin I've tried (disappointingly in the case of Bombay Sapphire, I was hoping that one would be blue).
Sounds like this one is a London-style gin- interesting to see one of these coming from central Europe!
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11-07-2007 @ 2:05PM
JMForester said...
Beany- well said. I guess I should have said crystal clear as a white diamond. Yes it is basically a London Dry Style gin. There are several in that style Zuidam from Holland comes immediately to mind, as do most of the French gins, and German Steinhaegers which are very dry since they only have juniper berries and no other botanicals. By the way, Citadelle from France is blue from Iris flowers and root. They changed the recipe a year or two ago so it would be clear, but public outcry made them go back to the original formula.
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