I was at a National concert at the Hollywood Bowl this fall and the band started with their new classic, ‘Nobody Else Will Be There’, with this early line: “Meet me in the stairwell in a second / For a glass of gin.” And sitting there in my seat that night and listening to those lines, I couldn’t help but think that gin’s new time is finally here.
It’s a craft spirit that doesn’t require from craft distillers the heavy costs and time required by aging brown spirits. And it’s a white spirit, but one with a little more character than some of gin’s white brethren.
You’re starting to see more space at retail devoted to gins. You’re also starting to see more crafts coming in not only from England but also from Ireland and Japan, and these new entrants only serve to create more buzz in the space. And even some of the older legacy brands are starting to show signs of growth.
As one industry insider recently told me, the gin renaissance has been “20 years in the making…gin is definitely in again.”