Welcome to Bar Fight, the weekly competition where two beers, liquors or mixed drinks fight it out and only one can come out on top…before hitting the bottom of our stomachs. This week…we play gin.

Gin. Although highly popular, very few people call themselves connoisseurs. Those who appreciate gin know that out of the three different classifications of the aromatic spirit, it is the London Dry style that is most widely enjoyed. Because gin’s base starts by distilling grain alcohol two, three or four times, different ingredients can be added at each distillation to bring complexity and variety. Gin’s distinct pine woods aroma and flavor comes from juniper berry, which is the origin of the liquor’s name. Always complex, and sometimes not properly appreciated, Gin has established itself in the annuls of fine spirits with spotless sophistication.

Two of the most popular gins on the market battle it out in this week’s Bar Fight. Which one makes your taste buds dance and liver quiver?

Triple distilled and infused with over ten different botanicals and spices, Bombay Sapphire is one of the highest selling Gins on the market. It tends to be lighter with less of the “punch” other gins can give you. Categorized as a London Dry gin, Bombay Sapphire is clean with a crisp effervescence that wakes up the senses. Certainly a fine choice straight or with a bit of tonic.

Probably one of the most recognized brands of Gin, Tanqueray is also a London Dry gin distilled twice with key botanicals of juniper, coriander and angelica root. Smoothly ordered by many a gent by uttering the phrase, “Tanqueray and tonic, please!” This well-to-do spirit makes a refreshing splash on the palette, smooth with a hint of piny bitterness.


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