Roots of Ruin: A Kentucky Gin Built on a Rye Whiskey Mash

Most of the gin on our shelf is Japanese, and almost all of it shares one trait: the base spirit is whatever the distillery already makes. Komasa builds Satsuma Gin on rice shochu. Masahiro builds theirs on awamori. Yamamoto Shuzo builds Garappa on sake grappa.

Roots of Ruin does the same thing in Kentucky.

The Base

Castle & Key distills this gin from their rye whiskey mash bill: 63% rye, 20% malted barley, 17% yellow corn.

That is a real departure from standard practice. Most gin is made by buying neutral grain spirit, redistilling it with botanicals, and bottling. The base is deliberately flavorless, a blank surface for the juniper to sit on. It is also cheap and reliable, which is why nearly everyone does it.

Distilling your own base from a whiskey mash costs more and takes longer, and the payoff is that the spirit brings something of its own. Rye is a grain with opinions. Even distilled up, it leaves a peppery, faintly bready backbone that neutral spirit does not have.

So the botanicals here are not sitting on nothing. They are sitting on rye.

The Botanicals

Eight: juniper, coriander, angelica root, licorice root, chamomile, ginger, rosemary, and lemon verbena.

The first four are the classical London Dry skeleton. Juniper is mandatory, legally and stylistically. Coriander supplies citrus and a slight spice. Angelica root is the fixative that binds the other aromatics and gives the dry earthy foundation. Licorice adds sweetness without sugar and body without weight.

The last four are where it goes its own way. Chamomile brings a soft apple-honey note. Ginger brings heat that lands at the back of the palate. Rosemary is resinous and pairs naturally with juniper, since both are evergreen and share aromatic compounds. Lemon verbena is the loudest of the four, a bright and clean lemon that is more perfumed and less sharp than lemon peel.

The Proof

53% ABV, which is considerably above the 40 to 47% where most gin sits.

Higher proof carries more of the botanical oils, and it carries them further. Many aromatic compounds are more soluble in alcohol than in water, so a stronger gin holds onto more of what came off the still, and holds its shape in a drink where a 40% gin would fade.

What It Tastes Like

Bright juniper and lemon verbena lead, with the herbal, earthy botanicals building underneath and the rye giving it a peppery spine. Robust rather than delicate. The finish is long and dry with a little heat.

How to Drink It

A gin and tonic works, though at 53% you want a decent measure of tonic and plenty of ice.

Neat and slightly chilled is also worth trying once, which is not advice you would give for most gins. There is enough going on in the base spirit to make it interesting on its own.

Pair It With

Fried and salty. Karaage, tempura, anything where the botanicals can cut through oil.

Try It at Juraku

Roots of Ruin is on the gin list at Izakaya Juraku, Lower East Side. Check the current menu or ask the bar what is open.