Fords London Dry Gin 1L

Fords Gin began as a collaboration between Simon Ford, a longtime spirits industry veteran, and Charles Maxwell, an eighth-generation master distiller at London's Thames Distillery. The two set out to build what they called the ultimate cocktail gin, working alongside a group of professional bartenders to reverse-engineer the botanical profile from the ingredients found in classic gin cocktails rather than starting from a traditional recipe. After dozens of trial batches, the final blend was settled on, and Fords has been distilled in London since 2012.

The gin is built from a base of English wheat neutral spirit and nine botanicals sourced through the London merchant house Joseph Flach & Sons, which has supplied gin distillers since the 1880s. Juniper, coriander seed, and angelica form the backbone, joined by lemon and bitter orange peels, Turkish grapefruit peel, Chinese jasmine, cassia, and orris root. The botanicals are steeped before distillation in traditional London Dry fashion, with no additional flavoring introduced after the still.

On the nose, juniper leads alongside citrus peel, jasmine, and a faint herbal lift from the orris and cassia. The palate is rounded and balanced, with grapefruit pith and coriander spice giving way to a soft floral finish that lingers without becoming sweet. Its structured, cocktail-friendly character makes it a strong choice for a Negroni or Tom Collins, and it holds its own in a classic Bee's Knees.