Rare Venezuelan botanical in new gin

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Back in the spring of 2013, Lesley Gracie, Hendrick's gin master distiller and global ambassador, David Piper ventured into the Venezuelan rainforest under the stewardship of explorer, Charles Brewer-Carias and expert botanist, Francisco Delascio. Trekking through several different terrains of the Guiana Highlands, from savannahs and mountain foots to riverbanks and dense jungle, Gracie tested many promising plant species, using her tiny ten-litre alembic still. One botanical in particular captured her senses, that of the most unusual 'Scorpion Tail' with its intriguing complex deep green note. In the jungle, she prepared 8.4 litres of Scorpion Tail concentrate, which she successfully transported in her suitcase back to the distillery.

Curious to see how the Scorpion Tail distillate would work with the gin, she immediately got to work on the special edition batch. Working out the exact balance of the flavour of the new botanical with the existing cucumber and rose infused Hendrick's gin took some time before the winning formulation came to fruition.

Commenting on her latest creation, Gracie said, "The character of the Scorpion Tail distillate lends itself perfectly to a combination with Hendrick's. The flavour profiles complement each other seamlessly, producing a finished gin which is both recognisable as the brand's but evidently different with deeper floral, spice and green character.

"From start to finish, the creation of such an intriguing one-off concoction has been an incredible experience for me. Here's hoping there will be many more adventures to come in pursuit of the extraordinary, she concludes.

With such a limited supply of the new liquid, only a very small number of bartenders, media and consumers will be able to try the rare liquid at suitably odd tasting events and competitions around the world from April 2014 onwards.