As a craft distiller, you’re constantly exploring, pushing boundaries, and taking inspiration from all the potential flavours nature provides. That’s the fun part of the job! In recent years, innovation in the world of gin has often come in the form of fruit infused gins.
Adventurous spirit, paired with novel flavour combinations and technical knowledge has lead to some of the most creative sips drinkers have the pleasure to enjoy.
To the un-initiated, the process of making it sounds simple. Simply infuse fruit in gin… right?
Wrong. At their best, they are no gimmick, nor are they quick and easy to make! Flavoured Gin has mass market appeal, and many are indeed artificial and insipid, but you can’t lump them all in the same camp. Making an authentic version is tricky.
Here are a few obstacles you are likely to face when trying to make a high quality version using real ingredients, and some guidance on how to surmount them.
Challenge 1: Labelling and allergen disclosure
One of the most critical, yet often overlooked, areas of fruit-infused gin is allergen disclosure.
The European Food Safety Authority (EFSA) lists 14 primary allergens that require special attention. While most of these compounds do not carry over in the distillation process (and so are not an issue for Distilled Gin), an infusion post distillation changes the game.
A distiller stepping into the realm of fruit infused gin also steps into a significant responsibility. Every ingredient that contributes to potential allergens must be accurately labelled on the bottle. The environment you work in will too.
Your customers need to trust that they can safely enjoy your gin, and proper labelling helps establish this trust and keeps you out of trouble.
In some countries it can even be a legal requirement. In the Uk for example, selling your products to major retailers requires your business to complete a SALSA or BRC audit. This demonstrates your dedication to the highest standards of food and beverage safety. It’s a rigorous process if you’re new to manufacturing, which will involve extensive paperwork, risk assessments, and traceability testing.
Challenge 2: Managing ‘floaties’ in fruit infused gins
When infusing fruits post distillation, you might encounter a tricky phenomenon and what is sometimes known as having ‘floaties’.
Obviously, solid particles might come from the actual fruit. For example, Sloe Gin almost always has sediment in it. This is generally accepted.
There are other compounds that can create a haze. Just as they do for any other spirit (and type of gin) these compounds make the spirit hazy when they fall out of suspension, which isn’t all that noticeable in a fruit gin. Going from clear pink or orange to cloudy pink or orange isn’t a transformation most drinkers even realise. But there are other small particles that bond and coagulate. A well-known one is pectin. Clumping, coagulating or separating from the spirit is not appealing at all, and it’s when customer complaints start landing in inboxes…
To manage it, you need to understand what you are infusing into the spirit beyond flavour and colour. What compounds? How do they degrade? How stable are they on shelf and for how long will they remain that way?
If your preference leans towards a clearer product, you may need to invest in a different fine micron filtration system to your usual. These can remove the smallest particulates, allowing your gin to sparkle while maintaining the fresh, vibrant flavours and colours of the fruit infusion.
Challenge 3: Colour stability in fruit infused gins
Visual appeal is undeniably a part of the drinking experience, and this rings especially true for flavoured gins. Customers associate particular colours with certain flavours, and a mismatch can affect the perceived appeal of your gin. It definitely affect the way it resonates once it’s in the glass.
Natural fruit infusions add beautiful hues to your gin, but unfortunately, these colours are prone to oxidation, causing the gin to either dim, or worse for a pink gin – turn brown over time. Brown Rhubarb-infused “Pink” gins sitting on shelves is a blight all retailers now too well.
Colour stability is a challenge, but not one without a solution. Using natural colourants can help extend the shelf appeal of your gin without compromising the authenticity of your product. Colourants such as annatto, anthocyanins, beetroot, turmeric and carmine are widely used. There are hundreds of other naturally derived plant-based food colourants.
Meanwhile, there are ways to combat the way heat and light degrade colour over time. For example nano amounts of ascorbic acid – say 50-75ppm – is a good way to retain a naturally created pink hue.
At a grassroots craft distilling level, colourants are perceived as a controversial subject. It’s often taboo. But it shouldn’t be and for those operating at medium scale and needing to supply a system where the route to market might mean it could be months before a bottle even gets on shelf – adding a complementary natural colorant to the hue you’ve already achieved is a great way to extend shelf life.
Three focus areas
Stepping into the world of authentic fruit-infused gin production is a fascinating and rewarding journey. Using real ingredients and natural methods can lead to spectacular products.
Go into with confidence by keeping three major factors in mind. Address how you are going to do responsible allergen labelling, ensure product integrity and preserve the attractive colour of your gin.
Once you do, you are well on your way to creating an exquisite, quality Flavoured Gin that will delight the senses and has the chance to resonate with gin lovers everywhere.
