Welcome to the Dell Botanist Diary: a few pages to draw you back from modern digital chaos to a place where our beautiful botanical garden’s flourishing nature meets time, precision and craft.
Our philosophy is rooted in a fascination with how botanical extracts can shape human mood, atmosphere, and sensory experience. This was an understanding rooted – like ivy – deeply through the past, and the very reason botanical gardens were valued by the generations before us.
We are reviving these lost traditions and using our diary to explore each botanical for its traditional values and to unlock their wonderful flavours within our stills. In doing so, we create a spirit that interweaves complex flavour with atmospheric experience – crafted to pair perfectly with a singular moment.
Take your time. Today, we’re talking about Juniper.
Of Juniper – Juniperus communis – The heart of all gin.
Juniper is the heart of all gin. Without Juniper, gin would not be gin. Juniper Berries being added to alcohol was first documented in Bruges in 1235, but it was later, in 1522, that the doctor Phillipus Hermanni wrote the first recipe for genever, in Antwerp. The rest, as they say, is the History of Gin.
Juniper is a species of coniferous tree – or shrub – in the Juniperus branch of the cypress family Cupressaceae.
Juniper is a species of coniferous tree – or shrub – in the Juniperus branch of the cypress family Cupressaceae. It is an incredibly resilient evergreen, possessing needle-like leaves in whorls of three and a unique reproductive cycle where its seed cones – the “berries”. They take up to three years to slowly ripen from hard green to a rich, oil-dense indigo blue.
Traditionally, in early modern folk medicine, physicians and healers believed juniper (Juniperus communis) to be a potent diuretic, digestive aid, and antiseptic. Ancient and indigenous cultures historically utilised its berries, bark, and essential oils with the intent to treat ailments ranging from urinary tract infections and arthritis to respiratory illnesses.
The undisputed heart of Dell & Dial. Juniper is. so much more than a simple requirement for gin, it’s an aromatic anchor that pulls the flavours together.
Where: Origin & it can be foraged.
Origin: Historically, Juniper has been abundant in the Northern Hemisphere, with evidence of Juniper trees dated to the Ice Age. Its popularity as a medicinal product aided its spread
In the Dell: Unfortunately, Juniper is not currently widely grown in Scotland, and we cannot source Juniper locally. Most of the UK’s supply comes from the Balkans or Italy. Some effort is going into re-establishing Scottish Juniper, but Juniper is notoriously difficult to farm, and we’re a long way off before Scottish Juniper is widely produced here.
WHY
Traditional Uses & Values: In the 16th century, physicians like Hermanni believed it acted as a potent antiseptic, to aid digestion, improve renal function and as an antiseptic. Juniper berries are rich in vitamin C, antioxidants (rich in alpha-pinene), and anti-inflammatories.
Flavour: Juniper berries on their own are extremely bitter; when extracted into a spirit, the bitterness softens and the complex, crisp aromas of woody, sappy pine needles, with a bright bitterness, shine through. You can expect notes of pine, orange and citrus peel, with a warming spicy kick.
How it feels: The notes are sharp, citrussy and earthy; the mouthfeel is dry and crisp. The sharp, moreish flavour provides a sense of clarity, while being uplifted with a groundedness.
“Juniper’s complex and earthy flavours really pull you in; for me, the flavour creates a sense of clarity, brightness. The flavour is a little shock to the system, like cold water plunge. The dry crip after flavour is what draws you back in for another sip.” – Ian: Dell & Dial co-founder.
How we use Juniper
Juniper requires absolute precision to get right. Too much, and the gin can be overwhelmed by its strong, astringent character; too little and we lose the crisp, moreish notes that make gin so drinkable.
Particularly when developing a gin with other, complex botanicals, the ratio of Juniper needs a lot of attention. We extract the flavours using copper Bain-Marie stills. It takes much more time, but our patience is rewarded. The stills use indirect, gentle heat which coaxes out the succulent, velvety oils without scorching the berry’s delicate, resinous top-notes. It produces a more floral and resinous flavour, rather than sharp and overly intense.
Best pairing with Juniper takes the edge of the sweetness and allows the citrussy elements to shine. Coriander can be used to create a herbaceous complex flavour, with a tangy citrus fruit like Lemon, Lime or – for the adventurous – Kiwi.
All of our gins use Juniper as a base that accentuates the other botanicals we use to create our “Moment”.