Northshore Alphonso Mango #11

I just read that this summer's Northshore limited release will be Distiller's Gin #11 infused with Alphonso Mangoes. Last year's rhubarb and ginger gin (Rhuginger #6) was outstanding, so I've really been looking forward to the news of this year's release. According to the site I read, it should be available sometime next week.

Anyone familiar with Alphonso mango? How do these differ from a more typical mango?

According to TOC, there will only be 256 of these bottles available, too. I wonder if that's just for retail sale, or if restaurants/bars will be getting some bottles, too, from that allotment.

I have yet to meet a North Shore bottle I didn't like -- which has led to a slimmer wallet than I'd like, not to mention a couple of mornings that were a little more painful than they would have been otherwise -- so I'm excited for this release, too.

Alphonso Mangos

256 bottles seems like an extremely small run; is that what they did with the rhuginger last year? I had some friends who went to some lengths to procure that one, but it didn't seem like they worked as hard as they'd have had to to find one of 256 bottles in the city.

I'll admit, I didn't care for it a bit (nor did they) but I'm game to try another, although probably not game to run all over creation to get one.

Has anyone seen this on store shelves? A friend of mine is really keen to pick up a bottle, but no one she talks to at the big liquor stores (Sam's, Binny's, etc.) seems to have any clue.

I saw this post about it being available at In Fine Spirits -- was that just for sale in the bar, or were they selling bottles of it, too?

danimalarkey wrote:Has anyone seen this on store shelves? A friend of mine is really keen to pick up a bottle, but no one she talks to at the big liquor stores (Sam's, Binny's, etc.) seems to have any clue.

I saw this post about it being available at In Fine Spirits -- was that just for sale in the bar, or were they selling bottles of it, too?

I was only at the bar and the retail store was closed, so I'm not sure if they have it for sale at the store or not. I've purchased a bottle of the regular North Shore Distillery gin last summer at the Binny's in River North. So I know that they carry their product. You may just have to head over there and look on the shelf. If I see it there I'll post. I may have to pick up a bottle myself because it was so great.

Hi all, thanks for posting about our Alphonso Mango No. 11. You can find a list of the retailers who have it on our website at http://www.northshoredistillery.com/ginmango.htm. We've heard from a couple of stores that have already run out, so I would recommend calling ahead if you are traveling just for this purpose - most of these places will gladly hold a bottle for you.

This was indeed a very small batch this year, primarily due to the limited availability and cost of the mangoes. There are bottles to be found, as well as some restaurants serving it, if you want to have a taste. We hope you like it - the response we've gotten so far has been great!

Cheers,

Sonja Kassebaum
North Shore Distillery

I had a taste of this last week at Prairie Grass Cafe and I thought it was excellent. Very noticeably alphonso but not 'beat you over the head' so. It was restrained but distinctive.

I can't imagine drinking this any way but straight or possibly chilled over a bit of ice because I think the delicate aroma would just be obliterated if you did.

Nice stuff!

=R=

I posted about it in the In Fine Spirits thread but I'll say the same here as well. I tasted this at In Fine Spirits bar the other night and Ronnie is right on the mark. Very aromatic and ever-so-slightly-sweet, it's distinctive, yet subtle. I asked for it however the bar tender decided it would be best and he gave it to me on the rocks with a twist. This is not something you'd mix into a cocktail, for sure.

My friend got lucky and picked up the last bottle from the Grand Ave. Binny's. The South Loop location, as of a few hours ago, had 4 bottles left. The price point was in the mid-30's, a steal for such a high quality product.

Speaking of prices, the normal gin is currently on sale at Sam's for $22 (an even greater steal, if you ask me).

Thank you, Sonja, for posting. Your Distiller's No. 6 has completely changed the way I think about gin!

There are still bottles (as of yesterday) at Wine Discount Center on Elston

msmre wrote:There are still bottles (as of yesterday) at Wine Discount Center on Elston

As of Monday evening, there were still a few bottles at their Highland Park location, as well. One fewer after I visited.

=R=

As of yesterday, there was one more bottle left at In Fine Spirits' shop. I bought the second to last one.

I tried it straight up chilled and thought it was just perfect that way. But my curiosity got the best of me and I tried a little mixing. I muddled some fresh ginger, 1/2 a lime, a few small sprigs of Thai basil. Then added a bit of simple syrup and the Alphonso mango gin. Shook it up with ice and strained it. I thought it worked pretty well. I didn't get the balance quite right and want to experiment a bit. As a semi-regular at the Violet Hour, I now understand what balance in cocktail tastes like - and this wasn't quite balanced. Next time I might try steeping the ginger in the simple syrup and using a little less syrup and maybe using a bit more lime for a little more acidity. But overall, I think it worked, allowing the mango and gin to really shine through with a little sigh of ginger and basil.

Dan and Ronnie, thanks for your kind words!

Hellodali, thanks for the recipe idea and inspiration. I hadn't tried pairing it with ginger & basil, I like the sound of that and can't wait to try it. We have a few others on our website too, just fyi (http://www.northshoredistillery.com/recipes.htm).

Cheers,
Sonja Kassebaum
North Shore Distillery

I'm so tickled you like my drink idea, Sonja. Let me know how it works for you as it might be a week or so before I go back to the drawing board with it. And I echo the praise above both for the Alphonso Mango and your No. 6 gin. The No. 6 set a whole new standard for me for gin.

I picked up a bottle about a week or so ago.

My favorite so far is making lime soda, mixing with Mango #11 and garnish with a small scored spicy thai chile.