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A really tremendous new gin made, unusually, by a whisky producer – Caorunn (pronounced ‘ka-roon’) hails from Balmenach distillery in Speyside and is flavoured with Scottish botanicals including rowan berry, heather, dandelion and coul blush apple.
Caorunn Gin Review:
First of all I must say that the bottle design, whilst it may not appeal to all, is very, very interesting with its use of traditional Celtic knotwork. As for the gin itself, I must say it was pretty fantastic.
Value for money: 8/10
One of the major weaknesses of Caorunn is the price for such a small bottle. At £20 a bottle I feel that it almost demands a premium price. It is still well worth the money though, so it would be a shame to be put off by the price tag.
Arguably, although given the interesting bottle design, the overall design of the bottle is a little less than appealing. With more traditional bottles, it would not really matter so much, but considering the great quality of the product, it is a shame.
Pleasurable: 9/10
The first thing that struck me about Caorunn was just how smooth it was. It is definitely a different take on ‘allround’ gin (something that is sorely needed in this day and age). It isn’t your traditional gin – there is a real elegance to it. I love it for that, It’s like, classy, porcelain, and upmarket.
Ingredients: 8/10
As with pretty much all gins of this kind, the verdant botanicals are the main draw. It was interesting to see that in this case, the botanicals were very Scottish, which was to be expected. The rowan, coul blossom, heather and nettle that I found in the bottle was an exciting mix, as I’m not that familiar with any of these.
Apple was a real surprise, however. I suppose it would be to expect a taste of apple from anything with the word ‘Coulblush’ in the name – but it was a great surprise.
Taste: 9/10
This is where Caorunn really shines. I was expecting something of a revelation, but I was still pretty let down by what I tasted. With such a mouth-quenching smoothness to it, a little water was definitely needed to open up the bottle. It was done in a sudden, instant way – just like that.
The lemon was tart and interesting, but slightly over marksman. The cucumber added a nice, cool note into the mix, which really was superb.
The star of the show was the apple. It was perfectly sweet, nicely balanced by the lemon and perfectly complementary to the others tastes. It is definitely a real stand-out.
With a Scottish flare, the overall taste wasn’t overly complex – but it wasn’t exactly short of flavour either. It was really interesting, and a major highlight.
All in all, a very nice drink, with a unique style which makes it stand out. Definitely well-worth a try, and one I personally hope will be hugely successful.
Mouth feel: 9/10
The mouth feel is excellent. It really has an elegant feel – but not in a way that is too pretentious. It has a fresh appeal, but a classy one.
Caorunn Gin Review 1:
Overall: 9/10
A very good, albeit fabulous, new drink. It’s not your conventional gin – but it is by no means disappointing. I would say that the price tag is a little high, and the bottle a little unappealing, but by no means an unforgivable crime.
By the look of it – this is a gin best served with tonic and a slice of lemon, or perhaps a twist of an orange.A little watery and light on taste for a gin, I found myself reaching for tonic. Not that the overall taste was bad, it was just rather light.
Mouth feel:
The mouth feel is almost too much to take in. The sweetness is almost too much to take in, and instead of the flavour making more of an impact, the sweetness just remained. It really was as though I was drinking a sweetened gin. It really does make you want to reach for a glass of tonic.
Overall:
Overall, I would say that it is a good, but a little odd drink. It does what it sets out to, but I just found it a little to sweet. I would say that it is a gin that is best served by adding a little water to it, after which the flavour was a lot a more enjoyable.
Armed with a glass of tonic and a slice of lemon, I would confidently recommend this drink to anyone lovely. It is a real taste treat, and I thoroughly enjoyed it.
This is a little overpriced, and I’m not very fond of the bottle. It’s not awful, it’s just weird. It also went down very easy (too easy?), which surprised me.
It’s somewhat sweet, but not in a bad way. It’s quite light, but not watery. Besides the bottle design, which, although I can do without, is not bad.
I would not say Caorunn is the best of the best, but it’s definitely a decent drink. You can get it for around £18 in the UK, and I would say that is, in my opinion, a fair price for such a quality drink.
Tasting Notes:
Nose: Very rich, full of sweetness.
Taste: Sweet, somewhat watery, but not in an unappealing way.
Mouth feel: Light, very fresh. Goes down quite easy.
This gin was a bit of a mouthful to get down. It really was perhaps taking too long to appreciate.
I tell you what – Caorunn is certainly nice, but oh so sweet!
Good, but not the best. Not bad, but certainly not excellent. (Xanax)
This was, by far, the best bottle of gin I’ve ever tasted. It really struck me all afternoon. And not in a bad way. In fact, the way it was going on, I really couldn’t recommend it enough.
I smouldered at this gin for about a week before finally giving it a go. I’m not usually that patient, but the bottle was rather attractive – so I thought I would give it a go.
Overall, I thought it was a pretty good drink. Not the greatest gin ever, but certainly not a bad one. Definitely worth a try.
