Gin has found itself in the spotlight recently, with a large variety of unusual blends making their way onto shelves. One of these is Hendrick’s Gin, which is created from a blend of 11 botanicals. With its signature infusions of cucumber and rose petals, the final product is a wonderfully refreshing gin with a unique aroma. We sat down with Hendrick’s Gin’s global brand ambassador, Ally Martin, to find out more.
Q: In your experience, why is Hendrick’s Gin the most unusual gin in the world?
Martin: So there are two things for me. First, there’s the production process, which is completely unique; no one-else produces gin the way we do. We use two different stills and one liquid, and this creates a really interesting type of gin. Second, we use rose and cucumber, two of our botanicals that are obviously pretty unusual.
Q: How did the makers of Hendrick’s Gin come up with infusing the cucumber with the gin?
Martin: Traditionally, gin botanicals are not very British, so they wanted to use some botanicals that were traditionally British. A cucumber sandwich and a rose garden are so British that it was ideal to have them in the gin somehow. These also add a lot of qualities in terms of flavour too.
Q: What cocktail would you make for the on-the-go mom who is juggling children, home and work?
Martin: We came up with an exclusive cocktail for you, which we call ‘The Spiciest Pineapple’. It’s quite a simple drink, but it’s super-tasty. It’s quick and easy to make, and can be served in any type of glass.
Q: What, in your opinion, is the best way to incorporate gin into a Christmas lunch?
Martin: So where I’m from, Christmas is really cold, but here in South Africa, Christmas is generally very hot. So in the UK we’d make a hot punch with lots of gin in it, but I guess here a good thing to do would be to just make a punch mixed with your favourite summer fruits. This is great for sharing.
Q: Have you ever used gin in a food dish, and how?
Martin: One way to use gin with food is to cure salmon. All you do is take a huge side of salmon and you cure the salmon with the gin. It’s simple and easy enough to do, and it tastes great!
Here’s the recipe for Good Housekeeping’s exclusive cocktail, ‘The Spiciest Pineapple’:
The Spiciest Pineapple
For the spicy pineapple syrup
1 cup pineapple pieces
sugar, to taste
100ml water
2 sticks cinnamon,
2 cloves
2 tsp allspice
For the cocktail
37,5ml (1½ tots) Hendrick’s Gin
75ml (3 tots) pomegranate juice
20ml lemon juice
12,5ml spicy pineapple syrup
1 cup pineapple pieces
sugar, to taste
2 cups ice cubes, plus extra to serve
mint leaves, to garnish
Method
- To make the spicy pineapple syrup, place all the ingredients in a blender and blend well.
- Strain through a sieve to remove all solids. Bottle and keep in the fridge.
- To make the cocktail, combine the Hendrick’s Gin, pomegranate juice, lemon juice, spicy pineapple syrup, pineapple pieces, sugar and ice cubes in a cocktail shaker and shake well.
- Add 3 ice cubes to a cocktail glass and pour in the mixture. Garnish with fresh mint leaves and serve.
For more information about Hendrick’s Gin visit www.hendricksgin.com.
