gin no. 096 – Connaught Bar Gin

There is a new most expensive gin in my collection. Previously, the most expensive gin in The Collection was no. 063, a special Letherbee that I had shipped from Chicago. But in February 2024, on a trip to London, we visited the Connaught Bar and there I dropped £95 on a single bottle.

The Connaught Bar made the World’s 50 Best Bars list, coming in at number 5 in 2023. Kelly and I stopped in on February 22, 2024 after a beautiful dinner at Trishna. The Connaught Bar is stunning with incredible service. I was shocked by their Vintage Cocktails menu which includes a £150 martini and a £2,210 Rob Roy. But what I was really interested in was their house gin.

Before I got to the gin, they presented a tasty complementary mini cocktail and some bar snacks. After that, I ordered the Connaught Bar Gin and tonic, garnished with the best grapes I ever ate in my entire life, no exaggeration. After that I tried one of their “Masterpieces,” the Faraway Collins – Bombay Sapphire Premier Cru, Sarsaparilla soda water, fresh Yuzu juice, homemade Eucalyptus-infused sugar syrup. I really enjoyed it. Once we finished our drinks, I ordered a bottle of gin to go, and added Connaught Bar Gin to the collection as no. 096.

But back to the gin. The base of Connaught Bar Gin is a traditional London Dry flavored with juniper berries, coriander seeds, licorice, angelica root, orris root, and mace. From there they add fresh peel of Amalfi lemons. But what makes their gin really unique is the addition of a Bordeaux. The wine creates a uniquely soft and smooth mouthfeel.

In the bar, they serve the gin and tonic in a ratio of four parts tonic to one part gin and garnished with an Amalfi lemon and two red grapes. This is a mistake, not the the grapes, the ratio. But the gin is too subtle to stand up to so much tonic. Even on their website, they suggest a double measure. I enjoyed it 1:1 at home which really allowed the gin to shine. And it truely is an excellent gin that can be enjoyed neat as well as mixed. You don’t want to hide a high end gin like this.

The Connaught Bar Gin comes boxed with a 70 cl bottle inside, 44% ABV. It is priced at an incredible £95, roughly $120. Despite the hefty price tag, I’m glad to have a bottle. Not only is it an outstanding souvenir of our trip to London and our night at Trishna and the Connaught Bar, but this wine-distilled gin is a uniquely delicious addition to the collection.