Malfy Gin con Limone Review
Big, bold citrusy flavours are the main characteristic of this beautiful lemon based Gin. Despite the historical heritage of the area – Moncalieri on the outskirts of Turin is famed for liqueurs like Martini Rossi, Carpano and Cinzano – it was a leap of faith that paid off for Fratelli Ferrero di Riccardo, opening the distillery back in 1906. Now run by the Vergano family, Carlo, his wife Piera and daughter Rita have built a much bigger business from what was once a smaller family run operation with the help of Master Distillers Beppe Ronco and Denis Muni .
Speaking on why they branched out, they said:
“I love that some brands are making very juniper-heavy gins – I have great admiration for them – its just not something that we wanted to get into. There are definitely plenty of traditional gins for traditional gin drinkers – we would like to make sure that people other than just those traditionalists get to enjoy the gin party.”
Sounds good to us! When you’re tasting the gin, the beautiful flavour of the Amalfi and Sicilian lemons shine through. They achieve this by steeping the peel in wheat based alcohol before basket pressing and distilled with Tuscan juniper, coriander, cassia, liquorice, and to double up on the citrus front some more orange and grapefruit peel. A rare hybrid vacuum stainless steel distiller works the mixture under pressure for 3-4 hours at a low low 60 degree temperature to capture the citrusy goodness. Then simply filtered and bottled
The result is a sherbet-like lemon flavour that can be a little overwhelming at first, but that once mixed with a fresh tonic or vermouth really reveals the range of botanicals. While fresh and lemony this shouldn’t be a turn off for traditional Gin fans, in fact quite the opposite. Adding this to your arsenal gives you the option to change things up with a limoncello style flavour. We’d recommend it for a clean, crisp summer G&T or Martini, and if you want to bring more herby notes in then try some lightly smacked Rosemary or Thyme as a garnish, and if you want to lean in completely to the citrus with a grapefruit slice be warned, this can be a little too much!
The bright and bold bottle matches the Mediterranean flavours inside and would be a fantastic addition to anyone’s drinks cabinet.