Quaffed the Raven

Design

In keeping with the Hayman’s range, the bottle is neat and attractive, with embossed lettering and a tidy, elegant label in pale pastel green. Stylish and simple, it’ll look good on any shelf.

Nose

A lovely citrus-forward juniper wafts from the glass, sweet and lazy like a sunny Sunday afternoon. The lemon and orange are perfectly balanced and beautifully fresh, lifting the soft pine and gentle hint of spice to create a genuinely mouthwatering aroma. Everything you’d want from a classic gin is there, without any burn or notes that disrupt the smoothness of the experience. After a little while, the coriander, angelica, and orris make an appearance, bringing things back down to earth. It’s classic and flawless.

Taste

Neat, the liquid has serious legs in the glass and an incredibly smooth mouthfeel. It’s soft on the palate, but positively bursting with flavours with a bright zing of citrus nicely countered by a very warming hit of pine and spice. It’s sweeter, obviously, but not in any way that I could imagine putting anyone off. The sweetness is perfectly balanced by the botanicals, with plenty of citrus throughout which still come across as incredibly fresh and vibrant, rather than say having a candied flavour. It’s insanely easy to drink and after a while the aromatic spices make a very welcome appearance, improving things even more.

Water initially somehow brings out a touch more sweetness for me, though the flavours remain balanced and fresh. Once things have calmed down a bit there’s a nice extra little bitterness to the profile, with some greener and slightly more herbal notes coming through and giving the citrus a little rest. It loses a bit of its boldness, but makes for an interesting change and arguably shows off a little more complexity here with the other botanicals able to express themselves a little better.

Finally, a G&T (3:1 Franklin & Sons Indian Tonic with a dried orange wheel to garnish). The result is lovely, with the flavours of the gin and tonic blending nicely, but also with some of the spices coming out a little more. There are some great bitter notes to keep the drink nice and refreshing, but enough of that gorgeous sweet citrus to make it stand out. The juniper could be a little more prominent, but it’s a very easy drinker.

Overall

Hayman’s Old Tom is a great gin and an absolutely lovely OT. This is a proper benchmark for what to expect, and while the gin craze has brought about a huge, huge degree of variation and interpretations on the overall theme of gin (in particular Old Toms, being less regulated than London Drys), this is an absolute must-try for anyone wanting to get into OT gin. The citrus flavours are remarkable, and the overall balance of botanicals shows that this is a brand with true expertise on their side. Highly recommended.

Feel free to check out my review of Hayman’s London Dry gin too!

Hayman’s Old Tom is available online

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All reviews are of the author’s personal collection, bought and paid for by the author, unless otherwise stated.