You know that feeling when you can’t decide whether to drink gin or wine and you wish there was something that would fill the gap? This is where wine-infused gin steps in.
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You might have noticed this interesting little gin subset, but wine-infused gin is a fairly new concept and one that Australia has made its speciality.
Combining the refreshing herbal and citrus flavours of gin with the rounded softness and spice we enjoy from red wine, these wine-infused gins are the perfect solution — in more ways than one.
Different types of wine-infused gin
Shiraz is the most popular option for wine-infused gin, though there is a multitude of other examples out there — even white wine, fortifieds and other fruit like sloe berries.
But red wine adds a beautiful dark red colour to the gin as well as plenty of berry, spice and gentle oak flavours.
Here are some of our favourite examples:
Tread Softly Pinot Noir Gin
Rich with the aromas and flavours we associate with Pinot Noir — cherries, strawberries and a little spice — this beautiful bright red gin has plenty of fresh juniper, summer flowers and grassy notes that blend with the Pinot notes.
Tread Softly is focused on sustainability. Bottles are made from 100% recycled glass and the brand has a tree-planting programme that is so far up to almost 1.5million Australian natives.
Buy Tread Softly Pinot Noir Gin here.
Otter Craft Distillery Mary Street Shiraz Gin
This deep purple gin speaks of the robust power of the Shiraz wine used here. And although the Shiraz makes itself at home in this spirit, packing plenty of rich dark fruit and chocolate notes, this gin still holds up its end of the bargain by exhibiting its own flavour profile.
Hand-made in Lilyfield, NSW by Eduard Otter and served with aplomb at Bar 26, the distillery’s speakeasy next door.
Buy OCD Mary St Shiraz Gin here.
Naught Distilling Sangiovese Gin
Less common other varietals, Sangiovese as a gin infusion is actually a great option. Harnessing the bright, stone fruit, citrus and herbs of the wine, Naught Distillery’s Sangiovese Gin creates quite an earthy, savoury base bolstered by a bold, fruit-forward mid-palate.
Distiller (and ex-basketballer) Chris Cameron recommends using this beauty in an adapted French 75.
Buy your Naught Sangiovese Gin here.
Tempus Two Copper Shiraz Gin
Better known as a Hunter Valley winery, Tempus Two’s Shiraz Gin from their Copper Series of beverages takes a slightly different tangent on wine-infused gin than most. Using their own Shiraz wine to create a base spirit, the distillers double down on the varietal, adding in extra Shiraz as a botanical.
The result is a herbaceous, rich gin with a dark, plummy Christmas cake profile. This drinks well in cocktails, but also as it is over ice.
Buy your Tempus Two Copper Shiraz Gin here.
How to drink wine-infused gin
Although they’re not quite as versatile as regular gin, the added richness and flavour from wine-infused gins means they can lift a few regular cocktails to new heights.
On the Rocks
Unless you’re a hardened gin soak, you’re not drinking straight gin like it’s whisky. But with its added flavours from the wine, this style works well just with a big ice cube and a twist of lemon.
Enriched Negroni
If you want to fancy-up your regular negroni, using wine-infused gin creates another layer of depth to the drink. Play with the qualities a little until you’re happy — just like regular gins, win-infused gin will give you different flavours that you can balance (or unbalance) with your mix.
We also love using other types of gin to negronis like barrel-aged gin or sloe gin.
Gin Highball
Highballs are becoming more and more popular, but what is a highball? Simply, it’s just your spirit of choice in a tall glass and ice topped up with soda. Ordinarily, this would water gin down, but the added wine flavours make this a refreshing yet very simple cocktail.
If you want a bit more flavour, try your wine-infused gin with a splash of tonic as well.
