Seagram’s Melon Twisted Gin

Flavor Profile

Well it seems that the well of potential flavors for the Seagram’s Twisted line is— well for lack of a better word— bottomless. If you thought that pineapple, lime, apple, berry and grape weren’t enough… Then here it is: Seagram’s Melon Twisted Gin.

Firstly, the bottle advertises “natural melon flavor.” While that may be true, melon isn’t a single fruit. The label portrays both cantaloupe and honeydew. I’m not 100% sure which melon is the primary flavor though.

Secondly, as with other gins in the Twisted line of gins, Seagram’s Melon Twisted Gin is a 35% ABV melon gin. Bottled below normal strength, it also has perceptible post-distillation sweetening.

Tasting Notes

Perhaps I was too critical in my introduction. Seagram’s Melon Twisted Gin does indeed smell like a combination of cantaloupe and honeydew. While there’s a bit of honeydew rind note in here (or unripe honeydew), it actually contributes positively to giving Seagram’s Melon Twisted Gin a more rounded, realistic nose. There is no trace of juniper/gin on the nose however.

The palate is mostly, but not entirely about the general melon flavor. A trace of spice accompanies a mid-palate peak of both honeydew and juniper. The juniper fades and a longer lasting note of sweet cantaloupe flesh comes in. There’s certainly this somewhat fake Midori background note here, but the finish is surprisingly more complex and less cloying than others in the Twisted line.

Cocktails

Perhaps the best use of melon gin is in a Gin and Tonic. It works surprisingly well. Although you might be cautious about using an expensive tonic water with something like Seagram’s Melon Twisted Gin, supermarket gins add too much sugar. It’s actually not a bad drink with a less sugar tonic water— maybe even Fever Tree Light.

Beyond that. Paired with a juice in a Gin and Juice it’s almost criminally too sweet. Melon certainly comes through, but this is the kind of sweet drink that tastes like Kool-Aid with too much sugar and will probably leave one hell of a hang over.

I suggest sticking to simple mixers like soda water or even a homemade lemonade light on sugar.

Overall, Seagram’s Melon Twisted Gin

Panning a melon gin like Seagram’s Melon Twisted Gin is expected from a gin critic such as myself. But keeping in mind what Seagram’s sought out to do with Seagram’s Melon Twisted Gin you have to judge it within that light. While I’d love more juniper flavor, and I find the sweetness a bit too much— as far as flavored melon gin goes— Seagram’s Melon Twisted Gin is alright.

I’d rather recommend the cucamelon gin from Boutique-y Gin Company if you really want a gin with melon character. But it’s not the worst of the Seagram’s Twisted line. In the right hands, you can make an okay gin and soda with this one. That is if you like melon.

Is it better than a melon vodka? Slightly, but it’s veering dangerously close to that line.