Best Gin: A Buying Guide by Style and Occasion

Gin's stylistic range — from crisp, juniper-forward London Dry to modern, citrus- and floral-led contemporary styles — means "best gin" depends heavily on what you're actually planning to do with the bottle.

Best Classic London Dry Gin

Tanqueray remains a benchmark for crisp, juniper-forward London Dry character, distilled from a recipe that's changed little since 1830 — the right choice for a classic Martini or Gin & Tonic where you want gin's traditional character to lead clearly.

Best for a Modern, Botanical-Forward G&T

Hendrick's, with its distinctive rose and cucumber infusion, helped launch the modern craft gin movement and remains one of the most recognisable departures from classic London Dry style — an excellent choice if you want your G&T to taste distinctly different from a traditional one.

Best for Maximum Botanical Complexity

Monkey 47, distilled in Germany's Black Forest from 47 botanicals including regional ingredients like lingonberry and spruce sprouts, offers a genuinely dense, layered profile well beyond gin's typical botanical count — worth sipping slowly to actually appreciate the complexity.

Best Island-Inspired Botanical Gin

The Botanist, distilled by Bruichladdich on Islay using 22 hand-foraged local botanicals alongside classic gin aromatics, offers a genuinely distinctive coastal, herbal character shaped by its specific island terroir.

Best for an Unusual, Striking Presentation

Empress 1908's natural butterfly pea blossom colouring gives it a striking indigo hue that shifts toward pink or purple when mixed with citrus or tonic — a gin that's as much a visual conversation piece as a drink.

Best Japanese-Style Gin

Roku blends eight traditional gin botanicals with distinctly Japanese ingredients — sakura flower, sencha tea, yuzu peel — each distilled separately before blending, for a lighter, more delicately layered profile than a typical London Dry.

A Quick Decision Guide

• Classic Martini or G&T: Tanqueray (London Dry).
• Modern, floral G&T: Hendrick's.
• Maximum complexity, sipping-worthy: Monkey 47.
• Distinctive island character: The Botanist.
• Visual impact plus flavour: Empress 1908.
• Something genuinely different: Roku.

Why Style Matters More Than "Best" Here

Unlike categories with a clearer quality hierarchy, gin's biggest differentiator is genuinely stylistic rather than a strict better-or-worse ranking — a London Dry and a contemporary botanical-forward gin aren't competing on the same axis, similar to comparing a Speyside and an Islay Scotch. Picking the right style for your specific drink matters more than chasing a single "best" bottle across the whole category.