The spirit industry evolves every decade with consumers contributing to the start of different spirit eras. There was an era of wine in olden times and an era of whisky in recent times. Amidst this, the era of gin began in Europe and travelled to the US in the west and India in the east. Owing to the theory of the ‘ripple effect’, new gin labels started to enter the market and flourish amongst its target consumer-base. While market reports seem to imply the end of this era, the launch of new gin labels like McQueen And The Violet Fog conclude otherwise.
Branded as an ambitious gin, McQueen And The Violet Fog seems to stand out amongst other gin labels in the market. Named after a poem that narrates a meeting with a mysterious rock band, this unique gin was launched by the New York-based wine and spirits company Sovereign Brands.
McQueen And The Violet Fog gin is distilled twice in a single copper pot still in the region of Jundiai in Brazil. The distillation process is combined with two techniques of maceration and vapour infusion which uses 21 botanicals in the process. Out of these 21 botanicals, these six are rare ingredients that have never been used in a gin distillation process before – Indian basil leaves, Portuguese rosemary, Mediterranean fennel seeds, calamansi from the South Pacific, star anise from Vietnam and Brazil-grown acai!
To infuse flavours in the gin, 15 botanicals are macerated in a neutral sugarcane spirit and the other 6 botanicals go through the process of vapour infusion in a copper basket. The gin is distilled in small batches of 500 litres and is bottled by hand. The outcome is a smooth spirit that offers an interesting flavour profile of citrus and spicy notes.
McQueen And The Violet Fog gin is bottled at 40% ABV and is priced at around US $65.
