St. George Spirits Botanivore Gin, USA

Founded in 1982 by German-born Jörg Rupf, St. George Spirits is one of the oldest craft distilleries in the United States. The distillery, housed in an old World War II airplane hangar on a former naval base on the edge of San Francisco, is home to Lance Winters, mad scientist and St. George's master distiller. Winters, who is widely-known for experimenting with different types of spirits, has a laboratory dominated by a 10-liter test still in addition to the glass beakers and graduated cylinders that cover every inch of counterspace. Next to the dusty chalkboards caked with equations for the conversion of sugar to alcohol and intricate diagrams of molecular structures are bottles of experimental whiskies, vodkas and even an aging balsamic vinegar (it's 14 years old already). St. George Botanivore Gin — a botanical eater of a gin — is infused with 19 different herbs and botanicals, including angelica root, bay laurel, bergamot peel, black peppercorn, caraway, cardamom, cilantro, cinnamon, citra hops, coriander, dill seed, fennel seed, ginger, juniper berries, lemon peel, lime peel, orris root, Seville orange peel and star anise. While the juniper, bay laurel and fresh cilantro are added to the gin's botanical basket, the other 16 botanicals are steeped overnight in the copper-pot still. Then, gentle steam heat is added to the still, in order to coax out the flavors and aromas of the herbs and botanicals. Fresh and slightly herbaceous, St. George Botanivore Gin has bright notes of citrus, earth and spice that are complimented by subtle floral undertones. The gin earned a score of 93 points from Wine Enthusiast, which selected it as one of the Top 50 Spirits of 2012. In addition, Park and Bond wrote that it was "a sunshine-drenched greenhouse of a spirit"while Esquire called it "complex and bright." This gin represents a unique expression by one of America's most creative craft distilleries. Pick up a bottle today!