First Impressions
Dorothy Parker once remarked, 'I like to have a martini, two at the very most. After three I'm under the table, after four I'm under my host.' The Algonquin Round Table wit — poet, critic, screenwriter, civil rights activist — lent her name and her attitude to this Brooklyn gin when Allen Katz and Tom Potter opened the New York Distilling Company on 5th December 2011. The date was deliberate: the anniversary of the ratification of the 21st Amendment, which repealed Prohibition. Potter, co-founder of Brooklyn Brewery, and Katz, a cocktail historian and spirits authority, set up in a nearly 5,000-square-foot factory straddling Williamsburg and Greenpoint, with a custom copper hybrid still shipped by boat from outside Stuttgart and an on-site bar called The Shanty.
Tasting
Traditional botanicals — juniper, coriander, cardamom, citrus peels — meet contemporary additions: elderberries, cinnamon bark and hibiscus petals. The nose is wonderfully clean and fragrant, with juniper arriving as lavender and camphor rather than aggressive pine. Lime cordial and floral notes dance with delicate spice. On the palate, initial sweetness is quickly countered by a cleansing peppery bite that binds the floral and spicy elements into a single balanced statement. Cinnamon warmth and jammy elderberry define the mid-palate. The finish is dry yet gives an impression of sweetness — berry flavours creating a ghost of fruit without actual sugar.
The Bottom Line
Dorothy Parker earns an 8 — one of the finest American gins currently available. Difford's rates it 4.5 out of 5, praising the way contemporary botanicals enhance rather than obscure juniper. At 44% it has enough muscle for a Martini but enough charm for a G&T. Like its namesake, it's sharp, surprising, and leaves you wanting another round — though Parker herself would insist you stop at two.
