NB Gin

Travel Distilled reviews NB Gin’s London Dry Gin and Navy Strength Gin made in small batches at their distillery in North Berwick on the east coast of Scotland.

Scotland has made quite a name for itself as a country producing not just whiskies these days but lots of great gins too, with names like Arbikie, The Botanist, Caorunn, Crossbill, and many more. There are gin maps of Scotland and even a book dedicated to the country’s gins and distilleries.

Now along comes NB Gin from North Berwick, on the coast about 25 miles (40km) northeast of Edinburgh. NB’s owners, Steve and Viv Muir, started as many distillers and also brewers do, by making stuff at home.

NB Gin Beginnings

In their kitchen they used a pressure cooker and some old central heating pipes to create a makeshift still, and started to experiment with both rum and gin. They used literally hundreds of botanicals to get the recipe right for their London Dry Gin. Their labour of love eventually produced enough demand for their spirits that they were able to get out of the kitchen and move to an eco-friendly distillery on the edge of North Berwick.

NB Distillery’s Spirits

The expansion into a proper distillery has also enabled them to expand their range, and as well as their gins they now produce several rums including a spiced rum, a citrus vodka, and their range of NB gins.

NB Gin

The heart of their range, though, is their NB London Dry Gin, which is bottled at 42% ABV (84 proof). Its botanicals are a fairly conventional line-up of juniper, angelica, cardamom, cassia bark, coriander seed, grains of paradise, lemon peel, and orris root.

Since its humble beginnings in the family kitchen, the company has gone on to much bigger things. It was the only drinks brand selected to celebrate Queen Elizabeth II’s 90th birthday in the UK, and was also chosen by Prince Harry and Meghan Markle for their Wedding Album.

In addition, it’s been served three years in a row at the afterparty for The Brits music awards. It’s not just about celebrity associations, though, as it was voted World’s Best London Dry Gin at the World Gin Awards in 2015.

Tasting NB London Dry Gin

On the nose it comes over as a very clean-smelling gin, a classic London Dry style. The juniper isn’t too strong and blends in with a lemon citrus freshness, with hints of cardamom spice and even tropical fruit.

Tasting it, the juniper steps forward a little but the lemon zestiness is still pleasingly present, there’s some cardamom and pepper spice about it, and the spice and juniper both linger on the finish. We were out of our usual Fever Tree Tonic Water but this NB Gin worked well even with a supermarket-brand tonic water.

NB London Dry Gin Navy Strength

The NB Distillery also produces a Navy Strength London Dry Gin, bottled at a hefty 57% ABV (114 proof). This clearly spices things up a little, with the juniper more evident on both nose and palate, with the nose also having a coriander herbiness to it, alongside that ever-present lemon.

Sipping this neat, it really packs a punch. The spiciness is as evident as the juniper, there’s some pine in there, lemon, and a balancing earthiness. All in all it’s a delightful strong gin, which doesn’t lose its power and taste even if you cut back on the usual proportions for your regular gin and tonic. This, too, is an award-winner, having picked up a couple of Gold Medals including at the Scottish Gin Awards.

Buying NB Gins and Other Spirits

You can buy all of their spirits from the NB Distillery website, including this London Dry Gin and the Navy Strength Gin. It’s worth paying the website a visit anyway, as they have a very informative blog, and if you want to pay them a visit in person you can also arrange a Ginspiration tour.

If you live in the UK you can find NB’s gins on Amazon. They’re also available from Master of Malt, with international shipping, and in the US from Drizly.