Flavoured gins live or die by one question: does the added ingredient enhance the spirit, or bury it? Beefeater Blood Orange Gin sits in interesting territory here. At 37.5% ABV, it lands at the legal minimum for gin in the EU, which tells you straight away that this is a bottle designed for easy drinking rather than juniper-forward intensity.
Style & Character
Beefeater is one of the most recognised names in gin, and their core London Dry is a genuinely well-constructed spirit. With Blood Orange, they've taken that foundation and built a citrus-led flavoured expression around it. Blood orange sits at the heart of this gin, and it's a smart botanical choice — blood orange carries a bittersweet depth that regular sweet orange simply can't match. Think blood orange soda from a Sicilian café rather than artificial orange squash.
The flavoured gin category is crowded, and not every bottle earns its place. What works in Beefeater's favour is heritage. They know how to balance botanicals. The question with any flavoured gin at 37.5% is whether the base spirit has enough backbone to support the fruit character without tipping into liqueur territory. At this ABV, it's a lighter ride — built for long drinks and casual mixing rather than contemplative sipping.
Best Served
Pour over ice with a premium tonic, a wheel of dehydrated blood orange, and a sprig of rosemary. For something more adventurous, try it in a spritz — equal parts Blood Orange Gin and Aperol, topped with prosecco and a dash of soda. The bitter orange notes should play beautifully against the Aperol's herbal bite.
At £21.75, this is firmly in accessible territory. It won't challenge seasoned gin drinkers looking for complexity, but as a gateway flavoured gin from a trusted name, it does the job with more dignity than most in its category. A solid 7.2 out of 10.
