Tom’s Town Botanical Gin is the official gin of the Kansas City Chiefs. I wonder if any other NFL teams have an official gin. I mean, I’ve heard of an official beer, but gin seems less that type of thing. Nevertheless, there is no doubt that Tom’s Town wants you to know about their affectionate connection with the Chiefs. They have marred an otherwise very cool bottle with a big Chiefs logo. The bottle is art deco, reminiscent of prohibition, and then they have this giant, modern football graphic. I say all of this as a Chiefs fan.
It is because I am a Chiefs fan that I popped open the bottle. My dad had given it to me a couple years ago, but as someone who has far too much gin to drink, occasionally a bottle will go unopened for some time. Given that the Chiefs were playing in Super Bowl LVII, I decided to open it and drink the Chief’s gin. So on February 12, 2023 it was officially entered into The Collection as gin no. 077. The Chiefs went on to beat the Philadelphia Eagles 38-35 on a last minute field goal, so I’m going to consider my bottle lucky gin from now on!
Tom’s Town gin is made with 14 botanicals, imparting flavor through both vapor infusion and maceration. A number of their botanicals are Asian in style, including lemongrass and Kafir lime. It has an earthy flavor with a hint of citrus and a little sweetness. Despite it being a strong at 90 proof, I enjoyed Tom’s Town neat. It milds out a bit with the addition of tonic, but it is a nice modern gin without falling into the trap of floweriness.
I received it as a gift, but it looks like it prices out under $30 which seems like a fair ask for what it is. It is distilled in Kansas City, Missouri in the old office building of Tom Pendergast, a prohibition era mob boss for which the distillery is named. They seem to have a love hate relationship with old Tom, but the man kept the gin flowing in KC during prohibition, so I’m gonna be on his side, even if he was a tax evader. Go Chiefs!
Concord Culinary Lyceum 