Flavor Profile
From the Boreal Plains comes Boreal Gin, from Duluth’s Vikre Distillery. The team at Vikre sought to capture something truly Minnesotan in culture and heritage with their line of gins. I spoke with Emily Vikre in my most recent book Gin: The Art and Craft of the Artisan Revival (available now!), so check out the book to learn more about the genesis of their distillery, their gins, and why Minnesota.
Vikre’s gins are made on a base of 100% Malted Barley, and though distilled several times so that the taste itself is clean, there’s a certain sweetness/heaviness that belies the team’s choice in base spirit. With Smoked Cedar, Sumac and Currant, their Boreal Cedar Gin might be the one that most jumps off the beaten path. That’s the one we’re taking a look at today, but if you absolutely can’t wait, yep all three are covered in the book. Let’s get on to the tasting notes.
Tasting Notes
The nose is complex, with lavender, grain and wood, and some pine/spruce notes just behind it. It’s a touch malty, a touch spicy, and quite interesting and nontraditional. As I grasp for similarities or reference points, it reminds me a bit of a cross between Pathogin.
The palate is up front juniper, coriander/spice leading in the middle, a touch of angelica, bright floral lavender, a touch of smoke and a tart hint of jam. The overall perception is dominated by the spiciness smoke hints in the finish, but up until that point, it’s a little bit contemporary, a little bit juniper and spruce. I’d say that the finish, quite long as it is, suggests notes of campfire and damp forest with fresh, earthy notes mixing with wet wood and green intimations on the breeze. The spirit itself is certainly quite thick and rich, with a warm, oily mouthfeel.
Overall
Overall, it’s not too hot nor firey, taking the botanically intense approach while not having the spirit hit you in the face. The woody/oaky notes add intrigue that might warrant a closer look in a Negroni/Old Fashioned. If you really want to try something that comes literally from the world of cooking, put your next Salmon dish on a cedar plank. And by that I mean, mix up a Salmon Vesper with Boreal Cedar Gin. I like it more in savory/bitter/floral cocktails, and was less a fan of it in fizzy mixed drinks, it’s more of a niche cocktail ingredient than a Gin and Tonic sort of gin. But still, quite good, quite unique and worth checking out.
Awards
I really like this! Perhaps because I am more of a scotch drinker – the smoky, earthiness that the cedar provides is really appealing to me. I’ve mixed it with fresh squeezed OJ and muddled blueberries for an experiment and was pleased with the results.
Of the gins I have tried, which is not a long list, this gin stands out the most. I find that this gin goes very well with acidic/sour mixers. I really enjoy Tom Collins with this as I find that out the gates it is mostly sweet/sour but then you get a nice smokey/spicy finish. Superb gin, albeit I am from Duluth, MN so there is a bit of bias ;).
Juniper gin amazing, we drank it watching ncaa hocke play offs go Bulldogs