What Makes Irish Gin Different? A Guide to Botanicals, Distillation & Flavour

Irish gin has come a long way in the last few years. What was once a fairly small category now has distilleries all over Ireland producing gins with their own ingredients, methods and very different personalities.

But what actually makes one gin different from another?

A lot of it comes down to three things: the botanicals, how they’re distilled and the decisions made by the distiller along the way.

It starts with juniper

Whatever else goes into a gin, juniper has to be at the heart of it.

Those little blue-green berries are responsible for the familiar piney, fresh flavour we associate with gin. From there, distillers can build completely different flavour profiles by choosing other botanicals to work alongside it.

Citrus peel can bring freshness. Coriander seed adds spice and citrus notes. Roots such as angelica can give a gin a drier, earthier character. Then there are herbs, flowers, fruits and spices, which open up an enormous number of possibilities.

This is where gin gets interesting.

Irish ingredients give gin a sense of place

One of the things we love about Irish craft spirits is that they can tell you something about where they were made.

At Mourne Dew, we’re based at the foot of the Mourne Mountains in County Down. That sense of place has always been part of what we do.

Our Kilbroney Premium Irish Gin takes inspiration from the landscape around us, including the nearby Kilbroney Forest Park.

Rather than trying to make a gin that tastes like everything at once, the aim is balance. You should still know you’re drinking gin, but there should be enough going on that you can enjoy discovering the different flavours in the glass.

How gin is distilled matters too

Ingredients are only half of the story.

The way those ingredients are distilled has a huge effect on the finished spirit.

At Mourne Dew, we use cold distillation as part of our approach to spirit making. Traditional distillation relies heavily on heat. Cold distillation allows us to work at much lower temperatures.

Why does that matter?

Some flavours and aromas are delicate. Heating them can change them or cause some of their fresher characteristics to disappear.

Using lower temperatures allows us to capture flavours differently, particularly when working with fresh and aromatic ingredients.

It’s one of the reasons our distillery looks a little different from what people might expect when they first visit.

Not every Irish gin tastes the same

“Irish gin” isn’t really one particular flavour.

Some are very traditional and juniper-forward. Others are floral. Some lean heavily into citrus, while others use fruit, herbs or local botanicals to create something completely different.

Even within our own range, you’ll find very different styles.

Kilbroney Premium Irish Gin is our classic expression, while Rostrevor Ruby Irish Gin takes things in a fruitier direction. Then there’s our Navy Strength Gin at 57% ABV, which brings considerably more intensity.

That’s part of the fun of gin. Finding the style you actually enjoy is much more important than following rules about what you’re supposed to like.

The tonic matters

If you’re making a gin and tonic, don’t forget that most of what’s in your glass is actually tonic.

A heavily flavoured or very sweet tonic can completely cover a more delicate gin.

We tend to keep things simple. Plenty of ice, a good tonic and a garnish that complements the gin rather than competing with it.

Sometimes less really is better.

Made in the Mournes

For us, making gin is about combining good ingredients with a slightly different approach to distillation.

We’re a small distillery, which means we’re close to what we make. From distillation and bottling to labels and packing orders, a lot happens under one roof here in Rostrevor.

And while we’re very proud to make Irish spirits, we’re even more proud to make them here in the Mournes.

If you’ve never tried Mourne Dew before, our gin range is a good place to start.