Islay UK artisans, Bruichladdich turn their hands to producing a dry Gin that is decadently beguiling and aromatically intriguing. For Bruichladdich, Botanist Islay Dry Gin small-batch, artisanal Islay gin the markers use nine of the classic gin aromatics – orris root, cassia bark, coriander seed, etc – and augment these with a heady harvest of 22 local botanicals, hand-picked by their expert foraging team from the windswept hills, peat bogs and Atlantic shores of this Hebridean island of Islay. This was a unique project for the head distiller, Jim McEwan. Jim says he had to "learn a new dance" with the unique Lomond pot-still and no one knew what to expect from that first, achingly-slow 17 hour distillation. The result: a highly distinctive, complex, floral gin with outstanding finish and impeccable provenance. In an age of re-badged industrial gins, the Botanist stands out as a truly artisanal, small-batch, hand-crafted labour of love and distiller's art. Botanist Islay Dry Gin is a breath of botanical Islay in every glass.