The Spirit of France - G'Vine Gin

Originally in The City Magazine

An unconventional ingredient makes for a very french gin

Jean-Sébastien Robicquet speaks with the confidence of a man who knows his drink. He has good reason to – his family has been in the wine business for 400 years, and without him, the world wouldn’t have the P. Diddy-backed Cîroc Vodka. Having gained masters degrees in Oenology and Business, Jean-Sébastien worked with Hennessy for more than ten years, before founding the Maison Villevert group. Based in a beautifully restored 16th century château in the Charente prefecture of France called – you guessed it – Maison Villevert, Jean-Sébastien’s team created the aforementioned grape vodka, as well as the unconventional gin that’s just celebrated its 10th birthday, G’Vine.

Bringing his expert understanding of grapes to the table, Jean-Sébastien looked at gin from a different angle: “I created G’Vine because I was not fully satisfied, as a Frenchman, by the gin on offer. I wanted to have something elegant and pleasant for my palate.” The use of grapes as the base for a gin might sound odd, but the sweet properties of grape worked beautifully in comparison to the traditional grain.

Ryan Chetiyawardana, owner of Dandelyan, the world’s best bar according to the Spirited Awards, is a big fan of the gin, as is head bartender Alex Kratena. Both took part in the ‘G’Vine Perspectives’ video series, using the brand’s Floraison expression as a base to their cocktails.

G’Vine’s 10th anniversary was celebrated on the rooftop of Galeries Lafayette in Paris. Gin experts mingled and danced into the night with models wearing green sunglasses – the perfect symbol for a thoroughly French gin.

The G’Vine expressions

Floraison

Floraison stands for ‘flowering’, and with good reason: it’s the most important time in a vine’s life, when it is distilled, in this case, into a fresh and floral gin that aims to bring to mind the vineyards
in springtime, when the scent of the blossoming vine flowers fills the air.

Unsurprisingly for a grape gin, the taste – smooth but full-bodied – is unique, and is surprising in its subtlety and sweetness. The less alcoholic of the two expressions at 40 per cent ABV, it’s best in a classic G&T or a light and breezy summer cocktail.

Nouaison

Nouaison means ‘setting’, when the flower turns from bloom to berry. The berry turns a subtle gin into something spicier and more intense, and a good alternative to a traditional dry gin. This version comes in at a heftier 43.9 per cent ABV, offering more punch than Floraison. It’s perfect for those who like stronger cocktails such as the Negroni.