Month: June 2022

Beadbadoobe has carved out a distinct lane for herself in indie pop. The former Uproxx cover story star is really driving in both lanes, where her indie songwriting definitely feels forged in bedroom-born pop music. It all shimmers with bubbly psychedelic grooves and it’s why she’s been tabbed to tour with Bleachers this summer and just came off a run of shows opening for Halsey. As she gears up for the release of her next album, Beatopia, Beabadoobee has just shared the latest single from it in “10:36.”

A technicolor synthpop beat lays the backbone for cascading keys and guitar, as Bea sings, “I know you thought it was just us, I didn’t think you’d fall in love. You’re just a warm body to hold, at night when I’m feeling all alone.”

The song sees her acquiescing to a dependency on touch and she explains that the sticky riff we hear throughout was with with her for a while, as she says:

“’10:36′ was written after Fake It Flowers and just before Our Extended Play, and I had envisioned it to be on that EP, but I was just sitting on that riff for ages and then I properly made a demo during lockdown. It was called ’10:36′ because that was the time I finished writing it. It’s basically about how I have this weird dependency on human contact to sleep.”

Listen to “10:36” above.

Beatopia is out 7/15 via Dirty Hit. Pre-save it here.

For the fourth time in their two-month playoff run, the Boston Celtics sit on the brink of elimination. Dismal first and fourth quarters in Game 5 sent them back home with a 104-94 defeat, the first occurrence of this postseason in which they’ve suffered consecutive losses.

The Golden State Warriors reclaimed homecourt advantage with their Game 4 win and protected it Monday. Now, Boston must do the same to reach a Game 7 for the third straight round.

Intriguing storylines are aplenty in this series. Let’s hit on some of the most relevant ones ahead of Thursday’s crucial Game 6.

Does the All-Star version of Draymond Green persist?

Despite some dominant defensive showings in prior outings, Game 5 was quite comfortably Draymond Green’s finest of the Finals. He kept the offense spinning with daring, well-placed passing reads, took shots when necessary (eight points on 3-for-6 shooting) and crafted an all-around superb defensive performance. At one point, he identified room to drive, attacked Derrick White off the dribble and tossed in a floater.

While the four-time All-Star is still searching for his first long ball of the series, his limited scoring didn’t hamper the offense as often as it had through the initial four games. He attacked space when afforded it and occasionally pushed in transition to pressure Boston, while balancing aggressive facilitating and caretaker decision-making (six dimes, two turnovers).

The bedrock of Golden State’s championship efforts is its defense. But instances like Monday, where Green pairs his wide-ranging, historic defense with tenable offensive contributions, ensure he’s an All-Star-caliber forward worth playing as much as possible in high-leverage spots.

It is by no means a coincidence that his best nights of this series have been Games 2 and 5, the two contests the Warriors have won convincingly. At his current peak, Green remains this team’s second-best player (even if it’s been Andrew Wiggins in the postseason). One more star-adjacent act could solidify Golden State’s fourth ring in eight seasons.

What type of defensive coverage does Stephen Curry see?

In Game 5, for the first time all series, the Celtics, over a prolonged stretch, deviated from their drop coverage against Curry. That alteration played into Green’s Game 5 renaissance, as well as productive scoring games from Wiggins (26 points), Klay Thompson (21 points), Gary Payton II (15 points), and Jordan Poole (14 points).

That the Warriors won amid Curry’s 7-for-22, 0-for-9 downfall speaks to the way Boston selling out against him more often opened up chances elsewhere. Whereas they’d almost exclusively adhered to dropping and switching through four games, the Celtics trapped and doubled him much more frequently on Monday. Everyone else saw room to breathe.

In fact, Golden State’s 118.7 offensive rating with Curry on the floor was its second-highest of the series thus far, despite his individual struggles. Changing the scheme invited his passing to shine and helped others flourish in advantageous scenarios.

Boston’s drop coverage had enabled Curry to prosper, but avoided sending extra bodies and scrambling into catch-up mode. A return to normalcy from Curry against the increasingly aggressive defense could spell doom for the Celtics.

Ime Udoka and his players have proven rather adaptable all season, so there’s absolutely a chance they revert to drop and switching, while scrapping the trapping. But the type of coverage they employ is an important wrinkle to monitor. If Curry and his supporting cast cook on Thursday, that might be all she wrote for the 2021-22 NBA season.

Can Al Horford and Marcus Smart get going as playmakers?

In Boston’s three best games of this series (including Game 4’s narrow loss), Al Horford has tallied 13 assists. In its two blowout defeats, he has two. The Warriors have done well to shrink his space attacking closeouts, while also deterring threes.

He’s such a valuable connective player for the Celtics’ offense. His quiet nights are stalling their chances of success. Of course, he is not a creator on his own, so some of his struggles are tied to Boston’s overall constraints.

But when Golden State goes small and starts Otto Porter Jr. or stashes someone like Thompson on him, he and Boston have to make exploiting those decisions a priority. Fire from deep over smaller guys. Continue to leak out in transition and engender quick, deep seals, a la Game 3 — though, to Golden State’s credit, it’s bottling up the Celtics on the break.

If the Warriors are going to flood the gaps in help to barricade the paint, Horford cannot be passive, as he was in Game 5. Force them to reconsider that gambit by letting it fly beyond the arc. When Boston demands closeouts, the offense flows well. When Golden State is content to sag off, the offense stagnates.

Marcus Smart, meanwhile, is having a very good Finals. His lows have not been as prevalent or deep as Horford’s. He’s posting 16-4-4-1, featuring four games with 18 or more points, on 56.7 percent true shooting. But his Game 5, even with a 20-3-2 box score, was below his standards.

He coughed up four turnovers and amassed just two assists, his fewest of the Finals. Smart’s intrepid passing style is integral to Boston’s offense, which generated a stuck-in-the-mud 95.9 offensive rating in Game 5. Udoka’s decision to provide him more on-ball reps over the second half of the year massively factored into the Celtics’ offensive turnaround.

Game 5, though, saw his passing drift from intrepid to erratic. Boston is averaging 12 turnovers in its Finals wins and 17 in its losses. Smart’s trapeze act of confident vs. reckless passing ties into that dichotomy. He and Tatum are the team’s lone two ball-handlers who can both attack from a standstill and dependably table-set for others.

Possessions are such a premium against this vaunted defense that even dead ball giveaways (as Smart’s were) can be critically damaging. The offense is stalling as is, let alone when shots aren’t attempted.

His scoring was quite good Monday, though the passing is really what amplifies the Celtics and he fell short there. To stave off elimination, they’ll need it to be much better.

How do he Celtics unlock improved interior scoring?

Among the grandest disparities in Game 5 was two-point scoring. The Celtics went 20-for-43 (46.5 percent), while the Warriors were a sterling 32-for-48 (66.6 percent). Further, Boston scored 27 points on its 54 drives with five turnovers, compared to Golden State scoring 27 points on 35 drives with zero turnovers, per NBA.com.

The Warriors clearly won the battle at the point-of-attack, applying pressure on the catch, crowding drives with physical stunts and bottling up the Celtics’ efforts to generate downhill separation. So much of what Boston accomplished offensively felt laborious and unreliable.

Golden State is exploiting the lack of truly threatening shooting from Boston’s complementary players. Horford, Smart, Derrick White, and Grant Williams are all often granted space to fire. Some way, somehow, the Celtics have to manufacture newfound real estate for drives.

One solution: weak-side actions involving Jaylen Brown, whose shooting prowess the Warriors do offer respect. Running it for other players like Smart or White may not concern the defense to occupy it away from stunts. But Brown’s presence clearly warrants attention from Golden State.

Another option: second-side actions with an empty wing to minimize the chance of those pesky stunts.

This set doesn’t amount to anything because Golden State’s rotations are superb (shoot it, Tatum!), but leveraging the luxury of multiple ball-handlers could bear some fruitful results. The outline of more possessions like this is probably worth replicating.

At the very least, the Celtics’ current offensive ideals are glaringly flawed against the Warriors. It places far too much onus on the defense being nearly perfect. This team may be up to the task, yet widening the margin for error could have benefits and perhaps push this series to a do-or-die Game 7.

Jerrod Carmichael is calling out Dave Chappelle for the comedian’s well-known penchant for telling transphobic jokes. Case in point, Chappelle famously made one mere minutes after being attacked on stage in early May. Carmichael, who recently came out as gay in his HBO special, made the remarks during a new interview with GQ Hype where he also blasted comics for being too concerned with teenagers, Twitter, and “cancel culture.”

While discussing Chappelle’s last special, which ensnared both the comedian and Netflix in a wave of controversy, Carmichael couldn’t fathom why the comedian would want to tarnish his “legacy” by continuing to go so hard on trans jokes.

“Chappelle, do you know what comes up when you Google your name, bro?” Carmichael said. “That’s the legacy? Your legacy is a bunch of opinions on trans sh*t? It’s an odd hill to die on. And it’s like, hey, bro. Who the f*ck are you? Who do you f*ck? What do you like to do? Childish jokes aside, who the f*ck are you? It’s just kind of played. But he’s choosing to die on the hill. So, alright, let him.”

As for comics who won’t stop railing against “cancel culture,” Carmichael is sick of hearing them complain.

“What does that mean, that people are mad on Twitter? Everybody’s fine,” Carmichael said. “These grown men are fine. I think, a lot of times, people who offer nothing truthful or meaningful about themselves then complain about society at large and create this boogeyman. It’s like, listen, that’s the most urgent thing in your life? God bless you. I’m tired of hearing it.”

(Via GQ Hype)

Getting an EGOT — meaning you’ve won an Emmy, Grammy, Oscar, and Tony Award in your career — is one of the rarest and most-respected honors in entertainment, since it takes a multi-talented and long-lasting winner to pull it off. So far, only 17 people have ever done it, with the latest addition to that group being Jennifer Hudson.

Hudson started with an Oscar in 2006 (for Best Supporting Actress in Dreamgirls), then got a Grammy in 2009 (Best R&B Album for Jennifer Hudson), a Daytime Emmy in 2021 (Outstanding Interactive Media For A Daytime Program for Baba Yaga), and just a few days ago, a Tony (Best Musical for A Strange Loop, which she produced).

Now, Hudson has shared a video of a moment shortly after she got the Tony win. In it, she says, “As I said when I won the Oscar [for Dreamgirls], ‘Look what God can do.’” With a cocky swagger, she adds before sharing a champagne toast with the other people in the room, “Well, He just did it again.”

She echoed that in the post’s caption, writing, “Wow !!! I am overwhelmed by all the outpouring of love and support that I am Still receiving and I’m still processing this whole new ground . What an honor ! Thank u all for being with me on this journey. I could not live this life without u. Like I said when I won my Oscar , look what God can do. Well He did it again !”

Hudson has also since updated her social media profiles to note she’s an “Emmy winning producer,” “Grammy winning artist,” “Oscar winning actress,” and a “Tony winning producer,” as well as an “NYT Best-Selling author,” for her 2012 book I Got This: How I Changed My Ways And Lost What Weighed Me Down.

The Hemingway Daiquiri has a larger-than-life reputation, much like Papa himself. The drink was created at the iconic The Floridita bar in Havana, Cuba, to accommodate Hemingway’s abhorrence of sugar. These days, the Papa Doble (Papa’s Double) is the stuff of legend and some of those legends mistake truth and fiction (again, consistent with Hemingway’s real life).

Before we dive in, most modern interpretations you’ll see of the Hemingway Daiquiri or Papa Doble will not be what Hemingway actually drank in Havana. Hemingway’s Daiquiri was a classic two-ingredient cocktail without the simple syrup and with double the rum. That’s it. Today, bartenders have added grapefruit juice and cherry liqueur to the drink, both of which add a ton of sugar. To me, that’s a perversion of the fact that Hemingway specifically didn’t want sugar in his drink.

To that end, I’m making the actual Papa Doble or Hemingway Daiquiri you’d have actually seen the man drinking in Havana back in the day. I’m even serving it exactly as the barmen at The Floridita did with a paper towel wrapped around the glass with a rubber band so that Papa didn’t drop his glass (he reportedly could drink ten or more of these in a sitting). Let’s get shaking!

Also Read: The Top Five Cocktail Recipes of the Last Six Months

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• The Americano Is An Excellent Low-Alcohol Cocktail For January, Here’s Our Recipe
• Our French 75 Cocktail Recipe Will Make You A New Year’s Eve Pre-Party Star

Hemingway Daiquiri

Ingredients:

• 3 oz. Cuban rum
• 1 oz. fresh lime juice
• Ice

Generally, I’d use Havana Club 3 here but I don’t have it on hand. I’m still using a Havana Club though. If you’re in the US, you probably won’t be able to get Cuban Havana Club easily, so aim for something like Diplomatico Planas or Equiano Light.

What You’ll Need:

• Rocks glass
• Cocktail Shaker
• Cocktail strainer
• Paring knife
• Hand juicer
• Paper towel sheet
• Rubberband

Method:

• Fill the rocks glass with ice and set it aside.
• Add the rum, lime juice, and ice to a cocktail shaker. Affix the lid and shake vigorously for about 15 seconds, or until the shaker is ice cold to touch.
• Strain the cocktail into the waiting rocks glass.
• Fold the paper towel sheet along its diagonal and fold over a couple of times and then use the rubber band to hold the paper towel onto the glass. Serve.

Bottom Line:

This is insanely refreshing. It’s simple, sure. But, there’s a nice depth thanks to the rum having good tropical fruit and aged wood vibes. The lime adds a burst of life and flavor to the drink with brightness and a hint of tartness.

Overall, it’s easy to see how Papa could down ten or so of these in a session (don’t do that). It goes down so easily and does take the edge off the hottest part of the day.

Lastly, having a bit of friction on the glass definitely made it easier to hold. Your hand doesn’t get cold or wet, which is nice. Plus, it feels very retro somehow.

Hope you’re hungry….for something. Nathan Fielder has been relatively quiet since infiltrating the Emmys and wrapping up Nathan For You, the world’s most awkward television show that you literally could not look away from. But after nearly five years of working on side projects, Feilder seems to be hinting at a new project titled The Rehearsal. As expected, it looks…strange.

The teaser shows a series of Truman Show-esque cameras surveilling a house while Fielder looks on. The show was given a vague description: “The Rehearsal, a half-hour comedy, is set in a world where nothing seems to ever work out as you had hoped and features Fielder giving people the opportunity to rehearse for their own lives.” So that answers nothing.

Despite the minimal details, Fielder hinted that the show is coming “very soon,” which means we could get more uncomfortable shenanigans sooner than we think!

Besides The Rehearsal, Fielder has some other projects on the horizon, including a Showtime show called The Curse, co-written with Benny Safdie and starring Emma Stone, about “how an alleged curse disturbs the relationship of a newly married couple as they try to conceive a child while co-starring on their problematic new HGTV show.” Amazing!

The man is busy: Fielder also has a role in the upcoming classic Marcel The Shell With Shoes On, which hits theaters next week. After all, inside all of our anatomies, there are two parts: there is a part that’s a liar and a part that’s a cool guy. Nathan is both.

Drake has been used to winning throughout his legendary run, but recently wanted to fully dive into another arena, quite literally, by opening up a basketball league hosted in his mansion. Sanctuary Basketball League, SBL for short, is now three seasons deep and to no one’s surprise, Drake’s team NTIG, made up of Chubbs and OVO Niko, are three-time champions.

Videos surface of them playing together occasionally on social media, but today’s may be the most hilarious as Drake assumed the role of 2010 NBA Finals Game 7 Kobe Bryant. “I did what Kobe did in Game 7 against the Celtics,” Drake exclaimed. “Shots not falling, you play f*cking defense.” It’s usually the videos of the Six God making shots seen the most, but today (June 15) Chubbs knocked down a game-winning mid-range jump shot to clinch the ring.

Drake’s love for basketball goes without saying, from acting as a high school hoop sensation in Degrassi to quite literally acting like a coach on the sidelines of Toronto Raptors games (not to mention, his infamous video for breakout song “Best I Ever Had”). There is the infamous back and forth with Draymond Green during the 2019 NBA Finals in addition to his instant classic speech about how he and the Raptors faithful built a community of love and pride after they won their first ring.

Check out videos of Drake’s championship celebration above.

Snapchat launched a #PetTrick Challenge last week where it offered users a chance to win $7,000 by showing off their pet’s most clever tricks. The challenge was part of a new campaign through its Spotlight platform where users are given the chance to win cash prizes for creating popular snaps using Lenses, Sounds or #Topics.

“Whether it be your best trick shot or your funniest impression, these challenges champion Snapchatters to create Snaps that highlight their unique voice, perspective, personality and creativity,” Snapchat wrote on its website.

The Top Snap winner @loganbackflip won $3,500 for turning the challenge on its head. Instead of merely showing off his dog Nike’s amazing tricks, he recreated them himself including fetching, hopping backward and grabbing the mail. The video probably reminded a lot of people of David Letterman’s “Stupid Human Tricks” bit.

What’s most impressive is how Logan holds his hands up like paws as he hops across his house. “This is my pet friend, his name is Nike,” Logan wrote. “Today I will be recreating all of his #PetTricks.”

Click on the photos to watch the videos in a new window.

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The second-place winner @babyitabbey won $2,500 for her dog Astro’s unique tricks of playing dead, catching a snowball and sharing hugs. Have to admit that if they gave our Academy Awards for dogs, Astro would win one for his compelling playing dead performance. He also does a great job at understanding commands when he finds Abbey a dog toy and gives her a big warm hug.

The third-place winner @joshsadowski won $1,000 for teaching his cat Milo to play fetch, an unusual characteristic for a feline. I wonder if Josh also has dogs that play fetch and if the cat picked it up from them?

If you didn’t think it was possible to train your cat how to play fetch, Chewy has step-by-step instructions that teach you how to do it using a training clicker. Even if your cat doesn’t naturally play fetch, Chewy stresses that it’s still possible.

“If your cat happens to be one who needs greater effort to train, I encourage you to do it,” Chewy writes. “Training your cat to play fetch is worth it. You will also enjoy the process and end result with your cat. So for those of you with cats who don’t just play fetch instinctively, I would like to state: You can train your cat to play fetch.”

The American Kennel Club put together a list of the best dog breeds to teach tricks. It says that the best dog for tricks is the border collie because they are “whip-smart workaholics” and are a “highly trainable breed.” The club also recommends poodles for being “keen to work” and “eager to please” as well as German shepherds because they are “tireless workers and want nothing more than to please their handlers.”

In the end, pet training is all about having fun and creating a stronger bond between yourself and your pet. When it comes to learning, pet training is not just a one-way street, it teaches humans a thing or two about themselves as well.

Post Malone has a thing for ’90s grunge/rock covers. He famously did an entire livestream set of Nirvana covers with Travis Barker on the drums in the first months of the pandemic, and at his 2021 New Year’s Eve show, he covered Alice In Chains’ classic “Rooster.” Now, for his latest, he tackled Pearl Jam’s 1994 single “Better Man” during an appearance on The Howard Stern Show, with Pearl Jam producer Andrew Watt on the acoustic guitar.

Malone explained to Stern why “Better Man” holds such a special feeling for him, saying, “I remember my brother Jordan, he was a Marine and he was stationed in Hawaii and we went out to go see him. I was 12 or 13 maybe and he played this song. We were driving around, and this was on an island you could drive around in a of couple hours. And he played that, and I guess I’ve just been thinking about that a lot lately.”

“So when you hear ‘Better Man,’ you think about you brother, who is a Marine?” Stern asks, to which Malone admitted, “Every moment and it makes me f*cking cry… he’s just a beautiful man and he introduced me to Pearl Jam in a big f*cking way.”

Watt begins playing the chords and Malone embarks on a slightly off-key cover of the tune. You could tell he was trying to match Eddie Vedder’s signature staccato and while he’s nowhere close to as good as the Pearl Jam vocalist in that regard, the emotions behind Posty’s choice of songs was felt throughout.

Watch Malone cover Pearl Jam’s “Better Man” above.

When it comes to summery spirits, gin is definitely in. The base for iconic cocktails like the gin gimlet, gin & tonic, and negroni, gin is a must-have for warm-weather mixology. This clear spirit gets its unique flavor from the infusion of juniper berries and various other herbs and botanicals. It’s fresh, clean, and adds a refreshing, flavorful base to your favorite summertime drinks.

As with most spirits, the gin marketplace is dominated by a few seemingly ancient, mass-produced household names — like Tanqueray, Beefeater, Bombay Sapphire, and a few others. But also just as with other spirits, there are myriad lesser-known, well-made gins on the market just waiting to be discovered.

To help you on your sunny day gin journey, we picked eight of our favorite underrated, undervalued gins and blindly nosed, tasted, and ranked them for you. We picked some from the US and others from around the globe to get a nice grasp on what the gin world has to offer. Keep reading to see them all and learn how they stacked up.

Today’s Lineup:

• Gray Whale Gin
• Esme Gin
• Ginarte Dry Gin
• Tuck Gin
• Ki No Bi Gin
• Gin Di Fiori
• Seersucker Southern Style Gin
• Akori Gin

Part 1: The Taste

Taste 1

Tasting Notes:

The nose is heavy on juniper and lemon peel. It’s definitely an inviting fragrant start. The palate continues this trend with a healthy dose of juniper tempered by grapefruit, lemon, slight spice, and earthy herbal notes. Overall, a decent gin, but is a little juniper-heavy for some drinkers.

Taste 2

Tasting Notes:

Resinous pine needles, lemon zest, mint, and juniper are prevalent on the nose. On the palate, I found notes of pine, juniper berries, lime zest, lemon, and just a hint of spice. The finish was warming, sweet, and piney. All in all, a very complex, flavorful gin perfect for fans of pine.

Taste 3

Tasting Notes:

A lot going on with this gin’s nose. It’s filled with tropical fruit aromas as well as citrus, pine, juniper, and an herbal, almost tea aroma. The palate continues this trend with more orange peel, lemon, lime, grapefruit, mint, pine, and a nice kick of juniper and slightly peppery spice at the very end. This is a surprisingly bold, complex gin that begs to be mixed with.

Taste 4

Tasting Notes:

Menthol, lemon, and lime, and not much else on the nose. The palate is all juniper and mint with some hints of citrus. It’s not a horrible gin, but a little one-dimensional for my liking. If you enjoy herbal gins, this will appeal to you. It just needs a little more oomph.

Taste 5

Tasting Notes:

Right away, I was struck by the floral aromas paired well with bright juniper, slight pine, and citrus. Sipping it only heightened the experience with more earthy juniper, pine needles, citrus zest, and a slightly fruity, sweet finish. Overall, this is a very unique, well-rounded gin.

Taste 6

Tasting Notes:

Complex aromas of juniper, cucumber, rose, and citrus dominate the nose. The palate follows suit with more juniper, orange peel, citrus zest, slight fruitiness, and cucumber freshness throughout. All in all, a flavorful, balanced, fresh-tasting gin.

Taste 7

Tasting Notes:

This gin has a hard-to-place herbal aroma that’s reminiscent of rosemary or dill along with lemon zest and the expected juniper. Sadly, the flavor isn’t as bold as the nose. There’s juniper, citrus, cinnamon, and an herbal backbone, but I expected much more from the fragrant start to this tasting. A decent gin, but a bit of a disappointment when you compare the nose and palate.

Taste 8

Tasting Notes:

This gin is surprisingly sweet on the nose with aromas of ginger and some fruity notes. Not much juniper or assumed gin scents. The flavor follows suit with surprising sweetness along with orange zest, floral notes, and some spice. All in all, not a terrible spirit, it just wasn’t enough like the gins I’m used to.

Part 2: The Rankings

8) Seersucker Southern Style Gin (Taste 4)

ABV: 42%

Average Price: $25

The Gin:

While there’s no definition of what a “southern style” gin is, Seersucker’s original gin is made from 100% American corn and was crafted to be used as a base for a summery, fresh cocktail. Flavored with juniper, coriander, lemon, mint, honey, and other herbs and botanicals, as a bonus, the distillery is family-owned and operated.

Bottom Line:

Herbal, juniper and slight citrus are the prevailing flavors in this gin. They’re fine, but this gin would be a lot better if there were more noticeable flavors. It’s a bit of a one-trick pony.

7) Akori Gin (Taste 8)

ABV: 42%

Average Price: $27.99

The Gin:

If you didn’t know better, you’d assume that Akori Gin is a Japanese product. In fact, it’s simply a Japanese-inspired gin that’s produced outside of Barcelona, Spain by Amadeo Campeny. It’s so named because it’s a rice-based gin flavor with juniper and Asian botanicals like ginger, kumquat, and dragon fruit.

Bottom Line:

If you prefer your gin to be sweeter due to it being a rice-based spirit that’s flavored with more fruit than usual gins, this is your jam. Otherwise, You probably won’t like it.

6) TUCK Gin (Taste 1)

ABV: 47%

Average Price: $39.99

The Gin:

This award-winning gin from Connecticut began with experimentation in a basement. What emerged was a flavorful gin infused with two types of juniper berries, grapefruit peel, jasmine flowers, and various other herbs and botanicals.

Bottom Line:

TUCK Gin is definitely a spirit for juniper heads, the type of gin fans who prefer the more juniper the better. If you crave a more well-rounded gin, take a walk down the gin aisle and find something else.

5) Gin Di Fiori (Taste 7)

ABV: 40%

Average Price: $21.99

The Gin:

This gin is like Italy in a bottle. It gets its flavor from the addition of Tuscan juniper berries, lemons from the southern Italian coast, rose petals, cinnamon, rosemary, and various botanicals found throughout the Italian countryside.

Bottom Line:

Gin Di Fori is definitely a unique gin. It’s loaded with locally sourced ingredients and has a nice juniper and citrus base, but it’s not as flavorful as it could be. It would still make a great base for a negroni.

4) Esme Gin (Taste 6)

ABV: 40%

Average Price: $22.99

The Gin:

This French gin is known for its simple, elegant flavor profile. It starts with a neutral grain spirit made from French wheat. This results in a soft spirit that’s only heightened with the infusion of juniper citrus peel, orange blossom, cucumber, rose petals, and other herbs and botanicals.

Bottom Line:

Esme Gin is smart. With a very similar flavor profile to the wildly popular Hendrick’s Gin, this balanced gin gets a ton of flavor from juniper and citrus as well as cucumber and rose petals.

3) Ginarte Dry Gin (Taste 5)

ABV: 43.5%

Average Price: $37.99

The Gin:

Another gin proving the Italians know how to make flavorful gins, Ginarte starts as pure wheat alcohol that’s infused with juniper berries and various unique herbs and botanicals including calamint, safflower, mignonette, rubia, and indigo.

Bottom Line:

Sometimes simple is better, but if you’re on board for a bold, flavorful gin with so many ingredients it might take a few samplings to find them all, Ginarte is for you.

2) Gray Whale Gin (Taste 2)

ABV: 43%

Average Price: $34.99

The Gin:

This award-winning gin was created to pay tribute to the 12,000-mile migratory journey of the gray whale along the California coastline. It features various herbs and botanicals found along the way, including juniper, lime, fir tree needles, mint, almonds, and even sea kelp.

Bottom Line:

This is definitely a pine and juniper-driven gin. But, even with those bold flavors, there are enough other ingredients to temper them and give this gin a well-rounded flavor profile.

1) Ki No Bi Gin (Taste 3)

ABV: 45.7%

Average Price: $76.99

The Gin:

No, this gin has nothing to do with Jedis. The name is Japanese for “the beauty of the seasons”. This “Kyoto Dry Gin” is flavored with many traditional Japanese ingredients, including yellow yuzu, hinoki wood chips, bamboo, gyokuro tea, and even Japanese peppercorns.

Bottom Line:

Ki No Bi Gin is a really unique gin and that’s not a bad thing. While it has the gin staple flavors like juniper and pine, it also has a nice kick of citrus and tropical fruit that makes it memorable.

Part 3: Final Thoughts

It’s clear based on this blind taste test that complexity is key when it comes to gin. Gins that relied on one-dimensional juniper-heavy recipes without anything to temper them didn’t fare as well as those with complex flavor profiles. It’s also clear that I’m drawn to exotic flavors.