First Impressions
Ginraw was born from a collaboration that sounds like the setup to a joke: a chef, a sommelier, a mixologist, and a master perfumer walk into a Barcelona distillery. But the result is no joke — it is one of Spain's most technically ambitious gins. The 'gastronomic' label is earned: alongside traditional copper pot distillation for the wheat-and-juniper base, the fresh Mediterranean and exotic botanicals are distilled using a Rotaval — a rotary evaporator borrowed from haute cuisine — at low temperatures that preserve aromas conventional heat distillation would destroy.
Tasting
Seven botanicals chosen with surgical precision: Murcia lemon peel, Valencia cedrat peel, and Spanish laurel represent the Mediterranean; Thai kaffir lime leaves, Indian black cardamom, and Egyptian coriander seeds bring the exotic. On the nose, juniper leads with fresh pine and peppercorn, lime zest and coriander behind, herbaceous and savoury. The palate is where the Rotaval technique reveals itself — waves of fresh citrus with an intensity that feels raw and uncooked, kaffir lime's aromatic power fully preserved, laurel adding herbal depth. The finish brings freshly crushed black cardamom, prickly heat, and lingering citrus brightness.
The Bottom Line
Ginraw earns an 8 — the Rotaval technique is not marketing theatre but a genuine innovation that produces one of the zestiest, brightest gins available. Only seven botanicals, but each one rendered with a clarity that larger botanical bills rarely achieve. The collaboration of four masters — flavour, aroma, balance, and service — is evident in every sip. Best in a G&T where the citrus explodes, or a Gimlet where lemon and lime meet their match. At £40, serious Barcelona craft.
