Konsum Gin: Interview on the new gin varieties

A lot has happened since Konsum Premium Gin was launched a good two years ago: the two fruit gin bombs that the cooperative creates and produces together with Gear Gin are very popular with gin fans throughout Germany. That's why Sebastian Löser from Oberhof and his team have decided to add not just one, but two new gins.

Reason enough to ask the head of Konsum Gin what the new Konsum Premium Gin Cherry can do and what the new London Dry Gin is all about. There are also drink recommendations on top!

Honest & Rare: Why did you choose cherry of all things for a third fruit-focused gin?

Sebastian Löser from Konsum Gin: In all our trials and deliberations, we were looking for an intense fruit that would make our gin stand out from the wide range on the market - as was already the case with the wild berry. It was clear to us that, in addition to berries and citrus fruit (i.e. the summer gin Blutorange ), a stone fruit representative should also be added to our product family.

What makes cherries so special?

The cherry is one of the most popular stone fruits, which is why we ended up dedicating our new gin to this fruit. The flavor of the sour cherry unfolds especially during the processing of the fruit, which motivated us to develop the Konsum Premium Gin Cherry.

The new Konsum Premium Gin Cherry

Which botanicals did you choose to enhance the cherry flavor?

In addition to the combination with Croatian juniper, we have supported the acidic aspect with lemon and orange, while thyme, lavender, rosemary, black pepper and sandalwood form the herbal part of Konsum Gin Cherry. Clove, cinnamon and star anise support the heaviness of the cherry - and thus form the perfect rounding off for the cold days of the year. But Konsum Premium Gin Cherry actually tastes good all year round.

If you would like to find out more about Konsum Premium Gin and the associated cooperative, we recommend our portrait: The story behind Konsum Premium Gin

Konsum Premium Gin Cherry - perfect for cold & hot days

And what does the end result taste like?

Excellent, of course! The gin has a pleasantly fruity aroma - a light citrus note paired with the heaviness of sour cherry. It is mild and therefore also pleasant on the palate. The light citrus freshness is accompanied by a variety of spices. This makes Konsum Premium Gin Cherry the perfect basis for a sophisticated mulled gin on cold days. Or you can make yourself a sparkling sour cherry mojito, which is really refreshing on hot summer days.

At the beginning of the year, there was also talk of a consumer gin creation with plums or damsons - what happened to this idea?

After various attempts and recipe changes, we have not yet been satisfied with the result and have not achieved the fullness of flavor in the bottle that we wanted. We will certainly make one or two more attempts to perhaps develop a premium plum gin for consumption according to our ideas. But at the moment we are concentrating on developing the three outstanding Konsum Premium Gin varieties of wild berry, blood orange and cherry.

After three fruity New Westerns, there is now also a London Dry Gin for the first time. What made you decide to produce a classic gin after all?

We are currently working at full speed on the first bottling of our Konsum Premium London Dry Gin and will soon be able to present the first finished bottle - probably in November 2022. Due to the good response to our Western Dry varieties and the steadily growing demand, some partners approached us and asked us for a classic London Dry Gin. So we set to work on the recipe to be able to offer this gin at our well-known high level of quality.

From November 2022, there will finally also be a London Dry Gin from Konsum Gin

Which botanicals did you choose for the London Dry Gin?

We use a number of botanicals for the London Dry Gin that are also used in our Western Dry Gins: Croatian juniper, orange zest, lemon zest, thyme, lavender, rosemary, sandalwood and black pepper.

Why were these botanicals chosen?

The flavor characteristics of the three varieties of Konsum Premium Gin Western Dry should also be reflected in the classic London Dry base variety. It is important to us that the Konsum Premium Gins reflect each other in the basic recipe and in the flavor profile. Basically, the three varieties - wild berry, blood orange and cherry - are based on the Konsum Premium Gin London Dry, even though the "classic" is now the fourth addition to the range.

Will there be further forays into the classic gin segment in the future, or will you be turning to more fruit bombs?

We are not planning another variety in the short term. We would rather concentrate more on our four-strong range. However, as we like to try things out and are always looking for new taste explosions, it may well be that a recipe will be presented to the public again.

As promised, Sebastian Löser also has some tasty drink recommendations up his sleeve - so that you can enjoy the Konsum Premium Gin Kirsche at any time of year. Well then - cheers!

Konsum sour cherry mojito

The recipe for the Konsum Gin Sour Cherry Mojito

Ingredients:

• 30 ml sour cherry nectar
• 30 ml lime juice
• 1 tsp brown cane sugar
• 40 ml Konsum Premium Gin Cherry
• Crushed ice
• 4 stems of mint
• 50 ml soda water

Preparation:

1. Mix the cherry nectar and lime juice, Konsum Premium Gin Cherry and half of the ice in a blender.
2. Place 2 stems of mint and the brown cane sugar in a glass and crush in the glass with a wooden pestle.
3. Add the cherry mixture.
4. Top up with soda water and the remaining ice and serve immediately.

Winter consumption mulled gin

Ingredients for 2 people:

• 100 ml Konsum Premium Kirsch Gin
• 200 ml cloudy apple juice
• 200 ml Thomas Henry ginger ale
• 400 ml grapefruit juice
• ½ orange
• 2 cinnamon sticks
• 2 star anise

Preparation:

1. Place the liquid ingredients together with the Konsum Premium Gin Kirsche in a large pan and heat slowly. Important: Do not let the liquid boil, just heat it up!
2. Wash the orange and cut into slices.
3. Add the orange, cinnamon sticks and star anise to the pan and leave to infuse on a low heat for around 30 minutes.
4. To serve, use a ladle to pour the mulled gin into mugs and decorate each with a slice of orange, a cinnamon stick and a star anise.