Founded in 1821 by Girolamo Luxardo and still controlled by the same founding family, Luxardo is one of the oldest European companies producing liqueurs and spirits. It is best known for its Maraschino Liqueur and Cherries and operates out of Torreglia in Padua after moving from Zara, the Venetian capital of Dalmatia, following the devastation caused to the area in the final throes of the Nazi withdrawal from the area. Their website has a fascinating account of the family’s back history.

The first juniper-based distillate produced by the Luxardo family appeared in their catalogue in 1833 but their London Dry Gin is based on their recipe for Ginepro di Dalmazia which they have distilled since the beginning of the 20^th century, although the bottle dates the recipe to 1936, featuring Dalmatia’s famous juniper. As well as the juniper eight other botanicals go into the mix – coriander, iris, angelica, liquorice, cinchona (a bark which gives a woody, dusty, and tannic flavour), cinnamon, cardamom, and bitter oranges. The composition of the base spirit used is not declared.

The botanicals are infused in the base spirit for twenty-four hours in a copper pot still before distillation. The spirit is then refined for nineteen days before bottling with a more than acceptable ABV of 43%.

Luxardo products have a reputation of being a little earthy and their version of a London Dry is no exception. On the nose the juniper comes through loud and clear mingling with some citric notes. In the glass it is a gin that is going to divide opinion. The juniper is forward, which is a tick in the box as far as I am concerned, and it combines with the bold bitter orange but there is a curiously chalky texture to the spirit which is initially a surprise and can be off-putting. The spices put in a brief appearance but never really make their presence felt and the gin signs off with a bit of a damp squib, more earthiness and tannin. All the ingredients are there to make a superb gin but it seemed to me a bit like a Ferrari consigned to driving in a Welsh twenty-mile an hour speed zone.

The gin is presented in a clear glass, rounded bottle rather like a wine bottle with tall, rounded shoulders leading to a long neck, a dark blue cap and an artificial stopper. The front label is busy, very Italian and the colours, at least on my bottle, are rather subdued, perhaps suggesting that it has lingered on the shelves of Drinkfinder for some time. The front label uses a mix of blues, gold, and red against a white background and features the Luxardo family crest at its centre. It also reinforces the family’s long distilling tradition.  

Luxardo also have a sour cherry gin, which I have not tried. The glory of gin is that it is a spirit that can accommodate almost any combination of botanicals, meaning that there is more than one for any palate. Sadly, this is not one that will get into my top ten.

Until the next time, cheers!