New Amsterdam gin

Has anyone else tried this (new to me) gin? Comes in an attractive bottle and has a smooth flavor. So far I've only seen it at Jewel. It regularly has a coupon hanging on it for $2 off either a 750 ml or 1.5 l bottle, as long as you buy it with a mixer. That's no problem because Jewel has recently launched a cheap house brand of sodas and mixers.

p.s., It's called New Amsterdam, but it's made in California.

That's the orange-y one? Haven't tried it. I'm partial to Hendrick's and North Shore.

No, not orangey. The gin is clear and the bottle looks like this.

I've read that when it comes to vodkas, price is indeed a good indicator of quality, whereas with gin, it's more a matter of personal taste. So far I've tried Tanqueray, Bombay Sapphire, and Gordon's (all London dry gin styles). I haven't tried Hendrick's yet, but I gather that it's a distinctly different style than the London dry gins.

Katie wrote:No, not orangey.

The taste is kind of orangey, though. Like, gross Tang orangey. I can't stand this stuff. Seriously, I'll drink almost anything, but I couldn't find a good way to use this stuff. Tried a handful of different cocktails I thought might either mask or take advantage of the weird flavor profile, but I ended up using the bottle by making gin and tonics for my sisters. I wouldn't drink the gin and tonics, though.

I meant as in orange-y flavoring, not color. I'll take Aaron's word for it and stick with my standards.

Aaron Deacon wrote:The taste is kind of orangey, though. Like, gross Tang orangey. I can't stand this stuff. Seriously, I'll drink almost anything, but I couldn't find a good way to use this stuff. Tried a handful of different cocktails I thought might either mask or take advantage of the weird flavor profile, but I ended up using the bottle by making gin and tonics for my sisters. I wouldn't drink the gin and tonics, though.

That's really weird. On their site, they don't specifically mention anything about their gin being flavored with orange or citrus in general (the way Hendrick's is up front about their gin being cucumber-infused), so I wonder if the flavor comes from some odd combination of herbs used in their infusion.

I want to give this a try now, but at a bar...if it tastes that objectionable, I'd hate to be stuck with a bottle of it.

I don't really like it either. I usually drink Hendricks or Plymouth.

See http://cocktails.about.com/od/ginreview ... terdam.htm

I haven't noticed any orange or citrus flavor to it. Maybe you're a supertaster, Aaron -- or I'm a subtaster!

But then all I wanted it for was gin and tonic anyway, and I add a lemon or lime wedge to that, so it wouldn't bother me if it had a hint of citrus. Alls I'm saying is I didn't notice any such taste to it.

Edited to add: after reading the review linked above, I get a bit more insight into its flavor. Lacking that strong juniper element, I suppose other flavors are more noticeable - and also, apparently, more noticeable to some people than to others.

I don't have the resource at hand but I recall reading that New Amsterdam is a genever-style gin rather than a London-Dry style gin. The difference being genever - a gin with origins in the Netherlands - is flavored with different botanicals than London Dry, e.g. there is no juniper botanical. So, while still technically a gin, it is of a different style than most of us are likely accustomed to using.

Anyway - I bought a bottle of this to try because it was on sale at my local purveryor. I, too, was surprised at its citrus-y flavor profile, but found it to be a tasty alternative to London Dry gin. It made for a really good Salty Dog, for instance. However - it also made a really lousy martini.

Besides the Salty Dog, one cocktail I tried with New Amsterdam that was really good is called The Gramercy:

2 oz New Amsterdam
3/4 oz grenadine
2 oz cranberry juice
2 oz pineapple juice
lime wedge garnish

I liked this on the rocks, but it would probably be tasty shaken and served up. And I think I got this from the New Amsterdam website, too.

Cheers,
Davooda