Just so you know, this post contains affiliate links. We do receive a small commission when you click on our links and make a purchase (at no extra cost to you). We always give our honest opinions, and these opinions are fully our own. See our Disclaimers →
Ginarte Dry Gin
About Ginarte Dry Gin
Ginarte Dry Gin is produced by Ginarte SRL, an Italy-based spirits company. As a brand, Ginarte is inspired by the various botanicals that were used to produce pigments in the era of renaissance artists. The recipe includes 13 botanicals including juniper berries, calamint, safflower, mignonette, rubia, indigo, wild celery, lavender, hibiscus, elderflower, pine buds, mountain pine, and pine needles.
To start, the juniper berries are infused in wheat alcohol before being distilled in a discontinuous vacuum alembic still. The botanicals are then distilled using using the same process but a slightly different ABV of wheat alcohol. During this part of the process, 5 of the botanicals are distilled on their own, while the other 7 are distilled together. To finish, all of the distillates are blended together, rested, adjusted with pure glacial water, filtered, and bottled.
Bottle Specs
❖ ABV: 43.5%
❖ Distillery: undisclosed (Italy)
❖ Aging: N/A
❖ Price Point: high price
My Tasting notes
The nose notes of this Gin immediately caught my interest. The aroma was complex, pleasant, and smooth. Although I couldn’t pick out any individual botanicals, the overall scent created a distinct atmosphere that smelled like a garden of plants.
I took a sip, and the flavor was smooth at first, with a burst of bitter juniper in the finish. As I continued to sip, heavy notes of pine emerged, with a bright alcohol flavor in the aftertaste. Although each sip was slightly different, it all felt like part of the same sunny garden. Over time, I found myself trying to just get through it, as my mouth did not enjoy the aftertaste.
Cocktail
For my cocktail, I wanted to try a simple yet refreshing recipe to really see how this gin performs. I stumbled upon a drink called the Greyhound – which looked delicious, and only uses two ingredients. Hope you enjoy!
greyhound
❖ 2oz gin
❖ 4oz grapefruit juice
- add the ingredients to a small cocktail glass with ice, and gently stir to combine.
Inside of a cocktail, Ginarte Dry Gin holds up pretty well, though is a bit lackluster. Still, I could appreciate the smoothness of the flavor against a relatively bitter mixer and zero sweeteners. My drink was surprisingly well balanced.
The botanical notes were pretty washed out, but halfway through my cocktail I was able to taste a subtle pine flavor.
Bottom Line
RATING: 2/5
Overall, Ginarte Dry Gin is a bit confounding. Although I enjoyed the cocktail portion of my tasting experience, I couldn’t quite pinpoint why at first. At the end of the day, the qualities that make Ginarte‘s flavor smooth and un-offensive are the same qualities that make it lackluster and uninteresting. And for such a high price point, I would expect a little more out of a good gin. I ultimately feel that it’s overpriced.
And while I enjoy a good limited-release bottle design as much as the next person, this particular attempt felt very disingenuous. As mentioned above, Ginarte‘s recipe is inspired by the art world and the botanicals used to make artistic materials. However, they failed to think like an artist the minute they decided to use the same exact gin recipe for each bottle. Instead, it feels like a clear cash grab to take advantage of the fame and prestige of the visual artists being featured.
This limited release Frida Khalo bottle is one of two different designs honoring Frida – both of which offer a surface-level understanding of her as an artist and person. And while the beautiful flowers on this design make for a lovely bottle, the second rose & skull covered design made me roll my eyes so hard they could probably see it from Italy! It’s clear that minimal (if any) research went into these designs, which is disappointing for a company that seems to be relying on this gimmick to sell their product. At the end of day, I would not recommend this bottle of Ginarte Dry Gin.
As always, drink responsibly.
Not Quite what you're looking for?
SEE OUR OTHER GIN REVIEWS:
JOIN THE NEWSLETTER!
Get more from Let’s Drink It! by subscribing to our monthly email newsletter