Mr Kamm’s Gin Review

Travel Distilled reviews Mr Kamm’s Gin, a small-batch London Dry-style of gin made at the bottom of a garden and using 45 botanicals.

I love a spirit with a story and Mr Kamm’s Gin certainly has that. Mr Kamm is Alex Kammerling and he invented his gin at the bottom of his garden in Finsbury Park in London. I wonder which garden it was, as I lived happily in Finsbury Park for several years. Anyway, the gin is now made by Mr Kamm’s parents at the bottom of their garden in Surrey, using a small still called Corinne. At maximum capacity, Corinne produces eighty bottles a day, so this is definitely small-batch gin.

Another part of the story is that the grain for the base spirit is barley, which Kammerling says is more expensive than wheat, ‘but the texture is sweeter and more creamy on the palate.’

Mr Kamm’s is a London Dry Gin in style but uses… wait for it… 45 different botanicals. According to their notes, the ‘juniper is augmented by ginseng and a colourful blend of barks, seeds, nuts, citrus, berries, herbs, spices, fruits, grasses, roots, leaves and flowers.’ These include ‘hibiscus, fresh grapefruit, orange and lemon peels, rosehip, apricot kernel, ginseng, blue butterfly pea and citra hops.’

Citra hops are more usually found in IPA beers, so how will they work with gin, and isn’t 45 botanicals simply over the top?

Mr Kamm’s Gin Review

Well, on the nose there’s a definite hit of juniper, and with 45 botanicals it’s a heady aromatic mix. There’s a lot of fresh citrus in there, and strong floral notes. It’s as if you’re walking down a country lane in the spring or summer, see a flower, stick your nose right in it, and fill your nose with a big fresh floral aroma. There’s violet in there too.

This is definitely a traditional gin, but it’s one that’s been beefed up with all these other inclusions. To talk of 45 botanicals sounds like hype, but it certainly works. The complexity is there on the palate too, whirling around like a washing machine – lemon, violet, spice, orange, rose, unidentified flowers, more spice. It’s a terrific gin, and at 42% ABV just that little bit stronger than usual.

Mr Kamm’s Gin Cocktails

Gin cocktail recipe using Mr Kamm's Gin being reviewed by Travel Distilled — Mr Kamm’s Negroni

Alex Kammerling says it would be great in something like a Negroni, but I only got a small tasting sample so I couldn’t try. Not that I mind, as this is fantastic neat. Like I said, Mr Kamm’s is a gin with a story and it’s a story worth telling… and tasting.