Gin is, at its core, a neutral spirit redistilled with botanicals, most importantly juniper. But within that definition sits an enormous range of styles, from the sharp piney intensity of a classic London Dry to the delicate floral softness of a contemporary new-world gin. The botanical bill, which botanicals you use, in what quantities, and how you extract them, is what defines your gin's character. Getting the ratios right is the difference between a balanced, memorable spirit and something muddled and hard to pin down.
This guide is not about following a single recipe. It is about understanding the framework well enough to build your own, adjust it systematically, and reproduce it reliably.
The One Non-Negotiable: Juniper Must Dominate
In most jurisdictions, including the EU, UK, and US, for a spirit to be legally called gin, juniper must be the predominant flavour. This is not just a convention. In the EU, it is a legal requirement under Regulation 2019/787. Producing a spirit with a wide range of botanicals where juniper is not clearly the lead note means you cannot call it gin, it would be classified as a flavoured spirit instead.
Practically, this means juniper should be the single largest botanical by weight in your bill, and its flavour should be recognisably present in the finished spirit. Everything else you add works in support of the juniper, not in competition with it.
The Four Botanical Categories
Every gin botanical can be placed into one of four functional categories. Understanding what each category contributes helps you build a balanced bill rather than simply copying someone else's recipe.
Classic London Dry, Ratio Framework
The London Dry style is characterised by a clean, juniper-forward profile with crisp citrus and minimal sweetness. The botanical bill is typically short, 6 to 9 botanicals, with juniper at a high percentage of the total weight.
| Botanical | Category | Typical Range (g/L base spirit) | % of total |
|---|---|---|---|
| Juniper berries | Lead | 15–25 g | 45–55% |
| Coriander seed | Spice | 5–8 g | 15–20% |
| Lemon peel | Citrus | 3–6 g | 10–15% |
| Orange peel | Citrus | 2–4 g | 6–10% |
| Angelica root | Root | 1–3 g | 3–7% |
| Orris root | Root | 1–2 g | 2–5% |
| Cassia bark | Spice | 0.5–1.5 g | 1–4% |
| Total | 28–50 g / L | 100% |
Enter your botanical weights and batch volume, the Gin Botanical Calculator scales every ingredient proportionally.
Contemporary Styles, Ratio Framework
Contemporary and new-world gins reduce the juniper percentage and increase the breadth of supporting botanicals. The profile is softer, more floral, more fruity, or more herbal depending on what the distiller emphasises. The botanical load is often higher overall (30–60+ g/L) with more individual ingredients.
The key constraint remains: juniper must still be perceptible as the lead flavour. A contemporary gin with juniper at 25–30% of the bill by weight, balanced against a wide spread of florals and citrus, is still gin. One where the juniper is hard to detect among a crowd of louder botanicals is not.
| Botanical | Category | Contemporary range (g/L) | Role |
|---|---|---|---|
| Juniper berries | Lead | 8–15 g | Present but softer |
| Coriander seed | Spice | 4–7 g | Bridge botanical |
| Lemon / citrus peel | Citrus | 4–8 g | Bright top notes |
| Floral (lavender, rose, elderflower) | Floral | 1–3 g | Signature note |
| Cucumber / fresh herb | Herbal | 2–5 g | Freshness |
| Angelica / orris root | Root | 1–2 g | Fixative, structure |
| Cardamom / grains of paradise | Spice | 0.5–1.5 g | Warmth |
| Total | 20–42 g / L |
Maceration vs. Vapour Infusion
How you extract your botanicals is as important as what botanicals you use. The two main methods produce significantly different results in the finished spirit.
Maceration
Botanicals are steeped directly in the base spirit (typically at 60–65% ABV) before distillation, usually for 12–48 hours. The alcohol acts as a solvent, extracting both volatile aromatics and heavier compounds from the botanicals. After maceration, the liquid, botanicals and all, goes into the still and is distilled.
Maceration gives a deeper, more robust, more integrated flavour. It works particularly well for seeds (juniper, coriander, cardamom), roots (orris, angelica), and dried citrus peel. The contact time affects extraction intensity, longer maceration extracts more of both the desirable and less desirable compounds, so over-macerating can introduce harshness or bitterness.
Vapour Infusion
Botanicals are placed in a basket or tray positioned above the still charge. As the liquid heats and vapour rises, it passes through the botanicals, picking up their volatile aromatics without direct liquid contact. The vapour then continues up to the condenser as normal.
Vapour infusion gives a lighter, more delicate extraction, particularly effective for fresh or fragile botanicals (fresh citrus peel, cucumber, fresh herbs, flowers) that would over-extract or lose their most volatile top notes if macerated. The result is typically fresher and more aromatic but less structured than a macerated gin.
Many distilleries combine both methods: robust botanicals (juniper, coriander, roots) in the maceration pot, delicate botanicals (fresh citrus, florals) in the vapour basket. This gives the structure of maceration and the freshness of vapour infusion in a single distillation.
A precision scale for botanical weighing. Botanical quantities in gin are measured in grams, 1 g of angelica root or orris root can have a noticeable effect on the finished spirit. A scale reading to 0.1 g is essential for repeatable results at typical home batch sizes of 1–5 litres.
Building Your Own Recipe, A Systematic Approach
The mistake most beginners make is trying to design a complex botanical bill on the first attempt. A better approach is to start with a simple, well-understood recipe and adjust one variable at a time.
- Start with 5–6 botanicals maximum. Juniper, coriander, lemon peel, orange peel, angelica root, and orris root gives you a complete London Dry framework. Master this before adding complexity.
- Make tinctures for development. Soak individual botanicals in small amounts of neutral spirit for 24 hours, then taste each one separately. This gives you a direct sensory reference for what each botanical contributes before you commit it to a full distillation run.
- Change one botanical per run. Adjust a single ingredient between batches, quantity, quality, or substitution. Multiple changes per run make it impossible to know what caused a difference in the result.
- Record everything. Weight of each botanical, batch size, maceration time, still charge ABV, cut points, dilution to bottling strength, and tasting notes. The Gin Botanical Calculator lets you save and scale your recipes.
- Rest before evaluating. Freshly distilled gin often tastes harsh and disjointed. Rest for at least 48–72 hours before making recipe decisions based on tasting.
Common Mistakes to Avoid
- Using too many botanicals. A 15-botanical bill sounds complex but often produces a muddled, unfocused spirit. Fewer, better-quality botanicals in thoughtful proportions make a more memorable gin than a long list of minor contributors.
- Under-dosing juniper to make room for other flavours. The result is a spirit that doesn't taste like gin. If you want less juniper presence, try sourcing a different quality or origin of juniper rather than simply reducing the quantity.
- Over-macerating roots and spices. Angelica, orris, and liquorice root become dominant and bitter if macerated too long. 12–24 hours is usually sufficient. Add them later in the maceration if you're doing a 48-hour soak for other botanicals.
- Not measuring botanicals by weight. Volume measures (teaspoons, tablespoons) are impractical for gin botanicals, density varies enormously between ingredients. Always weigh in grams.
- Changing still charge ABV between batches without adjusting botanical quantities. A change from 63% to 68% base spirit ABV will extract significantly more from your botanicals. Keep your still charge ABV consistent, or adjust botanical weights to compensate.
A quality gin botanical starter kit. If you're building your first recipe, a curated botanical kit gives you the core botanicals in useful quantities, enough for several development batches without committing to large amounts of botanicals you may not use.
Frequently Asked Questions
The full craft spirits reference. The Brewer and Distiller's Handbook covers gin distillation, botanical science, and the complete spirits-making process for home producers and craft distillers.