Alkkemist Mediterranean Gin

There are gins that are made, and gins that are conjured. Alkkemist is very much the latter. This Spanish gin is distilled just twelve times a year, each batch timed to coincide with the full moon. Whether the lunar timing genuinely changes the spirit is left deliberately open, but the mystique is half the point — it's the kind of origin story that makes you want to open the bottle just to find out.

Inside is a triple-distilled grain base and twenty-one botanicals doing interesting work. The headline act isn't juniper, it's Muscat grape, which brings a rich, faintly nutmeg-like aroma and gives Alkkemist its distinctive sweetness. Around it sit mountain tea, rose petals, sea fennel, thyme, mint and citrus peel, all audible. The result is floral and fruity with a savoury edge — complex enough to reward attention, never difficult to drink.

At 40% it has the weight to hold its own in a cocktail without bullying everything else in the glass. And the bottle earns its place on a back bar before you've even opened it.

How to Serve

Pour it neat and cold first — that aromatic sweetness holds up unaided. Then a G&T with a good Mediterranean tonic, plenty of ice, and a strip of grapefruit peel rather than lime.

Where to Drink It

Artesian at The Langham, where a gin this aromatic gets treated properly. The Connaught Bar for a Martini built around it. Bar Lotus in Soho for something longer and less formal.

Food Pairings

Grilled sardines or anchovies on toast — the sea fennel and thyme lean straight into salt and oil. A dish of marinated olives and Marcona almonds does the job too.