As much as I love gin (and you all know how much I love gin), I just can’t keep up with all of the emerging producers out there – and, frankly, I’m loving the journey through other categories of spirits, too. But pretty regularly I try some new (to me) gin; mostly they’re heartbreakingly bad (I mean … lose a $30-40 bet – that’s a typical price for 750 ml of almost any new gin).

Not this one. This one is *excellent.* If you’ve followed me for a few years, you also know I love roses – and on top of the requisite juniper, this gin is flavored with petals from three varieties of actual roses. It’s as beautiful as a ruby in the bottle or in the glass, too. I feared that it would be cloying, as I find most of the so-called craft gins these days – flowered to the point of nausea. But it’s not; the rose aromas and flavor are understated, and the gin is pleasantly smooth (for gin – my gin-hating friends will find it’s still gin.)

GLENDALOUGH ROSE MARTINI

3 oz Glendalough Rose Gin

1/2 oz Comoz Vermouth de Chambery

Dash of Fee Bros. Gin Barrel Aged Orange Bitters

If your gin is at room temp, stir all ingredients over ice and strain into a Martini glass. Garnish with a twist of orange zest. Me? I keep my gins in the freezer and vermouths in the fridge (where all vermouths should live after opening), so I don’t use ice. I don’t want the flavors diluted.