High Desert Gin

From Salt Lake City, UT, distilled at Spirits of the Wasatch Distillery (connected to Hammer Spring Distillery?). Their website calls it "High Mtn Desert Gin," which clashes with the label. Made in small batches with nine spicy botanicals, primarily Utah high-mountain desert juniper and sage. Sampled neat. Clear spirit with viscous legs coating the glass. The aroma is juniper and sage, with floral honeysuckle and white pepper in the background. On the palate, find juniper, dry sage, resinous rosemary, anise, and white pepper. The mouthfeel is thick and creamy. It's not harsh and not excessively sweet. The finish continues from the palate, becoming dry, a bit resinous and earthy-bitter (in a good way), with more anise and a hint of citrus way in the back. A long, lingering tingle on the finish. This is truly a juniper-forward London dry style. It evokes the scent and taste of Utah's high desert environment. I was extremely doubtful about this gin initially – I've had some truly awful local gins, along with good ones like Beehive Jackalope gin. This Spirits of the Wasatch High Desert gin isn't a floral, citrus-based American style gin; it's more akin to St. George Terroir and Vikre Spruce gins (even Plymouth and Sipsmith VJOP gins) rather than the floral or citrus-dominant gins available now. And I mean that as a positive. You won't find any rose petals, citrus rinds, or cucumbers here. It drinks very well neat at room temperature. With ice...? Well, we'll see. This will also make an amazing DeVoto Martini (3.7 to 1 ratio), G and T, and a Gin Gin Mule (using ginger beer and mint). More on mixing later. If you're seeking a quality, earthy, herbal, juniper-forward gin, this is it. Finding it outside of Utah will be difficult. NOTE: Co-owner Jennica Pounds is a programmer friend of Elon Musk and a DOGE supporter, which might influence your decision to support it. I'm done. https://www.sltrib.com/news/2025/03/09/utah-software-engineer-is-giving/ https://wasatch.co/products/