Gin making and the forager are a perfect match.  Craft your own gin with a signature blend of botanicals for a unique and special spirit!

Not everyone likes gin, but those of us that do tend to appreciate it for its complex botanical flavors.  There are a many gin makers from different parts of the world and many enjoy showcasing the flavors from where they are made. These gin makers are not required to list their proprietary blends to the public, so allowing your mind to attempt to identify and pick out the subtleties of floral, fruity, or earthy flavors adds to the gin tasting experience!

This is why I wanted to make my own gin.  It is a creative interpretation of one of my favorite alcoholic spirits. 

What is gin?

The only stipulations for gin to be called “gin” is the main the ingredient -Juniper “berries” and alcohol percentage (40% alcohol by volume to be exact).   

What we are making is technically called a compound gin or my favorite- a bathtub gin.  

As you will notice while looking at your finished gin, it will not be clear like commercial gin from a distillery.  Commercial gin is distilled again after the botanicals are infused by either masteration or vapor.  

Our finished product will likely be some variation of a yellow-brown color, but it really depends on the botanicals used. 

There are a lot of nerdy gin classifications I could go into as well, but for the sake of making a fun tutorial this is where I will stop.

Foraging for Juniper “Berries”: Gin’s Main Ingredient

Those little berries are not really berries at all, but are modified cones- and they must be the predominant flavor of botanicals used (using at least half of the botanicals as juniper berries will take care of this). 

There are many species of Juniper in North America and worldwide, most of which have been used by humans as a food source for thousands of years. They can also be used to make gin, but there are unfortunately some toxic species to be aware of – so it is important to identify your juniper correctly.  

Where I live, Utah Juniper (Juniperus osteosperma) is quite common and widespread.  So that is what I used but the most common juniper used in gin production is Common Juniper (Juniperus communis)

Both green and mature juniper berries are used in commercial gin production.  At the time of making my gin, there were only green berries on the tree so that is what I used, but feel free to use any combination of green and mature berries. It is up to you. 

It important to do research on what is available to you in your part of the world, but never guess at the variety. You can always purchase juniper berries while you are still learning. Sources such as Mountain Rose Herbs or Frontier Herbs are great places to find Juniper berries along with any other botanical you would like to add to your gin. 

Common junipers in the United States

Rocky Mountain Juniper (Juniperus scopulorum)

Utah Juniper (Juniperus osteosperma)

Eastern Red Cedar (Juniperus virginiana)

Common Juniper (Juniperus communis)

Toxic Junipers

These are of European origin and are usually used in ornamental landscaping in the United States. This is not an exhaustive list.

Savin Juniper (Juniperus sabina)

Cade Juniper (Juniperus oxycedrus)

Other Common Botanicals For DIY Gin

Along with the juniper, there are also other common botanicals associated with most gins as well.

Coriander (whole) – The seed from the cilantro plant.  You may be able to harvest from your own garden, or purchase at a grocery store. Use whole seeds, not ground.  

Aromatic Culinary Roots – Includes Licorice root, Orris root, Angelica root.

Lemon and/or orange peel – This enhances the brightness.

Botanicals to Craft Your Own Gin

This is where the creativity starts- the rest of ingredients are up to you!  A good place to start is to identify what kind of gin you gravitate towards.  Do you like something fruit forward? What about something more floral?  Earthy? Do you want the flavors to be something that really represents where you live? 

Listed below are some ideas for a wild plants and common plant inspired gin:

Floral– Rose, Lilac, Elderflower, Lavender, Dandelion petals

Earthy– Roots, Burdock Root, Bay Leaves, Black Pepper, Cinnamon sticks

Fruity– Rose hips, Hibiscus, Citrus peel, Sumac, any fruit such as raspberries, strawberries, plums, apples

Herbal– Mints, Nettles, Yarrow, Sagebrush, Rosemary, Fir tree tips

Odd ideas: cucumber, beet root, Birch bark

To sum up, the ideas can be endless! Start with a small amount. 

Tips

• -Do not use any powdered herb. This will quickly overpower your gin.
• -Flavors will mellow and “marry” after straining
• -When steeping remember this is only a flavoring- resist the urge to extract as much flavor as possible. 

How to Craft Your Own Gin – Put it All Together

This is a Juniper forward template. You will need:

Large glass vessel such as a half gallon mason jar

Cheesecloth or something similar for straining

720 ML Vodka

3TBSP Juniper

1TBSP Coriander (whole)

1tsp Fragrant culinary root such as licorice, orris, or angelica. 

3/4-1 TBSP combination of other botanicals (dried) or more 

2-4 thinly sliced pieces of fresh ingredients if using (ex: 2 slices of lemon, or cucumber)

You do not have to get perfect amounts of anything- this is a template to start with!

Give everything dried a quick crack in a mortar and pestle – no need to pulverize. 

Add anything fresh without chopping

Allow to steep in 750 ml of good quality vodka for 12-36 hours.  Taste after 6-12 hours.

Remember this is just a flavoring, we are not trying to create a medicinal grade extraction of these botanicals. 

When you are satisfied with the flavor, strain

Allow flavors to mellow after a week or so to get the full experience. 

Store in a pretty bottle and enjoy as your next cocktail ingredient!