Botanist (Bruichladdich) Distiller's Strength Gin 750ml

The Botanist comes from Bruichladdich Distillery, founded on the Isle of Islay in 1881 by the Harvey brothers before falling silent in 1994 and being revived in 2001 by a consortium led by Mark Reynier and Simon Coughlin, working alongside the whisky veteran Jim McEwan. In 2010 the distillery turned its attention to gin, enlisting retired local foragers Richard and Mavis Gulliver to scour Islay for wild botanicals suited to the spirit, work that current head distiller Adam Hannett has continued since taking over production in 2015. Distiller's Strength, released in 2025, is a higher proof expression of that original gin, developed as a nod to Bruichladdich's longstanding practice of bottling its whisky at cask strength.

The gin is distilled from a total of thirty one botanicals, nine classic gin ingredients such as juniper, coriander, and citrus peel joined by twenty two wild plants hand foraged across Islay, including local juniper, gorse, and wild thyme. Distillation takes place in a rare Lomond still nicknamed Ugly Betty, using a slow simmer process that runs roughly three times longer than typical gin production to gently draw out the delicate aromatics of the foraged botanicals. Distiller's Strength uses the same signature blend of botanicals as the original but is bottled at 50 percent alcohol by volume rather than the standard strength.

The higher proof brings noticeably more body, with sweet juniper and warm spice opening the nose alongside a lift of fresh citrus. On the palate the texture turns rich and viscous, carrying delicate mint, sweet gale, and wild thyme through a long, aromatic finish. It makes an exceptional Negroni and adds real weight to a classic Gimlet.