Cocktails with London dry gin
Gin is a neutral spirit redistilled with botanicals, and by law juniper has to lead. London Dry is the strictest grade: everything it tastes of has to come from the still, not from anything stirred in afterwards.
ABV40–47%On most London Dry, with 37.5% the legal minimum. The difference shows in a Martini or a Negroni, where a 40% gin can taste thin.
Substitutes for London dry gin
One London dry swaps for another one to one. The gin itself has no substitute: without juniper it is a different drink.
On the label
- London Dry
- The driest, most juniper-led grade. All flavor comes from redistilling with the botanicals; afterwards only water is allowed, no coloring and no more than a trace of sugar.
- Distilled gin
- Distilled like London Dry, but flavoring, coloring or sweetening may be added afterwards. Most contemporary gins with citrus or floral notes in front sit here.
- Gin (compound)
- Flavoring mixed into neutral spirit with no redistilling. Usually the cheapest bottle on the shelf.
- Old Tom
- An older, lightly sweetened style, sitting between dry London gin and maltier genever.
Sources
- 27 CFR 5.154 geographic designations — Electronic Code of Federal Regulations
- 27 CFR Part 5, Subpart I — Electronic Code of Federal Regulations
- Regulation (EU) 2019/787, Annex I — UK Legislation
- Reg (EU) 2019/787 Annex I gin categories — UK Legislation
- Reg (EU) 2019/787 cat 22 — UK Legislation
- Regulation (EU) 2019/787, EUR-Lex
