Southern Gin

Flavor Profile

Thirteenth Colony Distillers unsurprisingly hails from the United States’ thirteenth colony, and the nations’ fourth state. The gin is called Southern Gin and it comes from a land probably best known for its peaches and pecans. I will say that, and just to dispel the notion that just because a distiller is so proud of their heritage that their distillery is named after the place it comes from; their gin is named for the region they come from, but its not so literal as that its pecans and peaches all the way.

Instead, Southern Gin is refreshing classic styled gin. Bottle and name pays tribute to the self, but the drink itself pays tribute to something even further back in Georgia’s history, that is the place that Georgia’s founder James Oglethorpe was born:  Merry Olde England.

Tasting Notes

The nose is sweet and inviting. A fair amount of juniper. It smells mild and pleasant, with nary a trace of alcoholic burn on the nose.

The taste actually is remarkably true to the nose too. The profile is affable, sweet juniper which fades into warm citrus. Lemon up front but hints of other citrus as well, intimations of grapefruit. The tail is mildly warm, with a bit of heat. This is where it begins to get interesting. Warm North Carolina Pine and cold wintery Douglas Fir, and it sticks around for a moment after it finishes. In an odd way, I want to draw a parallel to Clear Creek’s Douglas Fir Eau De Vie, which finishes in a similar way.

Cocktails

As you start mixing up some cocktails with Southern Gin, you can start to detect some of the more obscure botanicals come out and shine a bit. In a martini, you can start to pick up on some hints of floral sweetness in the pine and juniper. A warm lavenderesque* tonality comes to shine. Let’s go on to the other side of this. Maybe take an Alaska cocktail, and you can find some hints of Licorice  anise, clove and other warm spices.

Southern Gin is versatile and there’s a surprisingly large amount of flavor packed into this rather smooth bundle.

What I think is even more remarkable about Southern Gin is that it comes in at a much lower price point than most American craft gins. Whereas other gins come in more frequently at $30, Southern Gin is under $20. So if anyone is looking for a high quality gin that you can sip in a martini but also enjoy in a good Evans Gin and Tonic without spending a lot of money- this is it.

Overall, Southern Gin

I was rather impressed with Southern Gin. I thought it was quite good and if I was told to guess how much this bottle cost based on taste alone I would have never guessed it.

The final burst of pine and juniper is probably enough to keep folks who aren’t comfortable with gin from becoming a fan. But for fans of classic gin, particularly of the Plymouth style, this should rank high on your “to try” list.