Country: Italy  Region: Trentino-Alto Adige  Vintage: NV Category: Gin  Color:  Gin Producer: Pilzer "The Pilzer distillery was founded in 1957 by Bruno Pilzer's father. It is situated in the Val di Cembra, in the heart of Trentino (not far from Cesconi) The majority of the grapes used in the production of their grappa come from the Val di Cembra or Lavis, so are distilled soon after the fermentation is complete. Pilzer looks out for the very best raw materials, saying ""You cannot make a good grappa from poor grapes"". Another of Pilzer's 'secrets' came from a visit to Scotland many years ago: ""I saw that in the production of whisky, they dispensed with the 'heads' and 'tails' of the distillate, as these contained greater levels of unclean higher alcohols. Although this is not standard in the production of grappa, when we introduced it we found we produced a much cleaner grappa."" Each variety is distilled in a different way in order to retain as much of the character of the grape as possible. The grappe are then held in tank at a high alcohol level until just before bottling, to keep them fresh. As an avid fan of botanicals and distilling, Bruno started producing the Ginpilz in 2015 to create a unique Italian interpretation of craft gin. It finishes clean and crisp with lemon, black peppercorn and a slightly savoury flavours. To bring these aromas out, we like it served as a gin and tonic garnished with rosemary and lemon." Product Features: Sustainable;Vegan;Vegetarian Winemaker: Bruno Pilzer Vinification: "The team at Pilzer have long felt the need to complete their portfolio outside of their well-know grappas. One of their stills had ceased to be used for production and was put on display for six months in the Jenever Museum in Hasselt in Belgium. During those trips, Bruno began to understand the world of jenever and its close relation to gin. This inspired Bruno to produce Ginpilz.Distillation of gin is very different from that of the grappa or fruit spirits Pilzer are used to. Learning by trial and error, they identified the perfect methods to extract and concentrate the precious and delicate aromas using a pot still in a water bath. tillate. Final dilution and filtration took place with great care, and the resulting 40% ABV proved to be just right. Tasting Notes: "As Bruno says, ""I wanted a pure product to reflect our complex forests, something reminiscent of our area and of course Juniper. In short, I wanted an Italian Gin."" Fresh juniper aromas are followed by a wealth of aromas, most notably lemon peel and orange zest, with other herbs adding to its complexity and persistence. The dry palate has subtle flavours reflecting the aromatics, with a smooth texture and lingering fresh juniper." Closure: Vinolok  ABV:40%