The best gins for G&Ts, martinis and negronis, from our taste test of 50

The Guardian

18-07-2025

Gin and tonic has been a mainstay of British drinking culture since the 17th century, when its initial medicinal use soon turned recreational. It has seen several notable explosions in popularity over the years. The effects of the 18th-century 'gin craze' were famously immortalised in Hogarth's satirical artwork Gin Lane – though some might say worse crimes have been committed in the name of gin more recently.
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A centuries-old ban on small-scale distilling was finally lifted in the UK in 2009, fuelling a huge boom in 'craft gin' and record sales between 2015 and 2019. It also led to an incredible variety of bottles, flavours and colours, which were sometimes more weird than wonderful: Vegemite or Jaffa Cake gin, anyone?
So, what is gin? Unlike scotch whisky, there are few legal requirements for a spirit to be sold as gin. Essentially, it needs to be made from a neutral spirit (usually derived from grain); it must have a predominant juniper flavour and must be bottled at 37.5% ABV minimum.
These loose criteria give distillers plenty of room to play around with ingredients, infusions and distillation methods – creating a huge range of gin styles. And there are myriad ways to enjoy them: whether your go-to is the classic G&T, a martini, negroni or another cocktail, gin's versatility means it's no surprise it has endured.
As a long-term member of the mother's ruin fanclub – and having written about drinks for almost a decade – I have collected and tried hundreds of different gins. For this test, I revisited my home-bar favourites as well as trying many new-to-me gins to bring you this selection of delicious and interesting gins for your drinking delectation. I considered 50 gins from 40 brands, testing each one for aroma, before sipping it straight and drinking it in a gin and tonic with ice and lemon. If the brand suggested a specific serve, I tried that too.
Making my way through a refreshing gin flight in my garden (during a heatwave), I was once again struck by gratitude that this is classed as actual work – but work it is, and I hope my thorough testing results in more gin enjoyment all round.
These gins are mostly British, which wasn't intentional; there are fantastic Scandinavian, Japanese and Italian gins, and both Papa Salt and Four Pillars Bloody Shiraz from Australia almost made the list. Ultimately, though, classic British ingredients and techniques still hold their own. So ice at the ready: here are the 10 best gins to enjoy a summer of beautifully botanical serves.
Bullards Coastal gin, 70cl
£45 at Jarrolds
From Norwich comes this clean, citrussy gin filled with the saline seaside flavours of the Norfolk coast. Infused with hand-foraged sea purslane, marsh samphire and Douglas fir, this is a bracing, salty joy to drink in a gin and tonic. Bullards suggests serving with blackberries and a twist of fresh lime, but a sprig of samphire is even better, in my opinion. This gin edged ahead thanks to its innovative eco-pouch format: buy a bottle for life and top up with more affordable pouches of gin, made from sugarcane, to reduce its carbon footprint – why don't more brands do this? The brand's Strawberry & Black Pepper gin is also wonderful with only a touch of sweetness, a sensible 40% ABV and a hefty thwack of warming black pepper.
That Boutique-y Gin Company Proper Pink gin, 50cl
£26.95 at Master of Malt£35.89 at Amazon
The definition of pink gin has become a little muddled in recent years. Traditionally, it refers to a navy-strength gin with added Angostura bitters (which gives the pink hue), but it's evolved to include any pink-coloured gin – whether that's due to colouring, berry or rhubarb flavours, or spangly mermaids. Not in my book – or That Boutique-y Gin Company's. Its Proper Pink gin is a throwback to the 18th century: a 46% concoction of gin, lemon and vacuum-distilled Angostura, finished with even more Angostura. This is sophisticated stuff, best enjoyed in a martini with a twist.
Hernö Old Tom gin, 50cl
£34.50 at Master of Malt£35.99 at Drink Supermarket
Sweden's award-winning gin distillery Hernö was named gin producer of the year in 2024 at the prestigious International Spirits Challenge. Hernö's Juniper Cask gin (the first gin to be matured in juniper wood) and Six Rivers gin (with an aroma of verdant Icelandic moss) are both standout – but the brand's Old Tom gin is a shining example of this category. Old Tom gins are named after the black cat symbol that signalled an 18th-century illegal distillery, and are sweeter than London dry, with sugar traditionally added to offset the harsher base spirit used in bootleg gin. The style proved popular, and Hernö's naturally sweet botanicals – including vanilla, honey, lingonberries and generous amounts of almondy meadowsweet – give it a fresh update. It's sweet and smooth enough for sipping, or perfectly at home in a Tom Collins.
Renais Grand Cru Cask-Aged gin, 70cl
£75 at the Spirit Co
Actor Emma Watson's family have been winemaking in Burgundy for more than 30 years, and Renais – a grape-based gin – is the creation of Emma and her brother, intended to show off the estate's viticultural heritage. Pressed grape skins from winemaking are repurposed to create the Renais base spirit and limit waste (Renais is carbon-neutral and B Corp-certified), before infusing with botanicals showcasing the terroir: linden flowers, grains of paradise (aromatic citrussy, peppery seeds) and acacia honey mingle with juniper. This Grand Cru Cask-Aged gin is then rested for a year in French oak Chablis casks, giving it a divinely silky finish and layer upon layer of vanilla-spiced complexity. It felt sacrilegious to mix this into supermarket tonic, so I'd suggest trying the Renais Old Fashioned. Only 720 bottles were produced for the UK market, so be quick.
Gordon's London Dry gin, 1l
£25.50 at Waitrose Cellar£20.50 at Amazon
When you want a classic gin and tonic with no surprises or messing around, it's hard to beat the refreshing taste of Gordon's and tonic. It's deservedly the category leader in gin, and the one many top bartenders reach for when mixing a G&T (they also invariably recommend Schweppes tonic – and never slimline). Made since 1769, its juniper-forward recipe is crisp, citrussy and the quintessential example of a London dry gin, winning it a swathe of spirit industry medals and a Great Taste award too.
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Edinburgh Gin Seaside, 70cl
£35 at John Lewis£30.95 at Master of Malt
I'm a sucker for a coastal gin – they have a more obvious sense of provenance than some others. This coastal dry gin from Edinburgh Gin (now the UK's seventh-biggest gin brand) is abundant with bladderwrack seaweed and Scottish marine plants, and well balanced with spiciness from coriander seed and cardamom. Subtle breezy seaside flavours emerge in a gin and tonic, but the natural saline tang of this gin makes an epic dirty martini. Honourable mentions to the entire Salcombe Gin range, Fishers Original Gin and Skagerrak Nordic Dry, who also deserve a place on your bar cart.
Cotswold Dry Gin Essence, 100ml
£17.50 at Master of Malt£18.50 at Cotswolds Distillery
I love the standard higher-alcohol Cotswold Dry gin – a worthy Great Taste award winner with its natural woodiness, zingy grapefruit, lime and fresh floral flavours of Cotswold lavender – but I love the Cotswold Gin Essence version even more. Housed in a cute 100ml apothecary-style bottle with pipette, just five drops of this concentrated botanical essence in 200ml of tonic makes for a lighter but equally satisfying serve, with just 14 calories, 0.23 units of alcohol and all the natural flavour intact. If you like this approach, Hayman's Small gin is also delicious – and comes with an adorable thimble for measuring out your gin.
Bathtub Gin Grapefruit & Rosemary, 70cl
£34.95 at Master of Malt£34.45 at Amazon
Flavoured gin has a well-deserved bad reputation. From bizarre juniper-jarring flavours to synthetic ingredients, there are plenty of bad examples to fall foul of. But not Bathtub's Grapefruit & Rosemary: here, the natural botanical components of Bathtub Gin – which already has a punchy herbaceous citrus profile – are amplified by the extra infusion, so the bold grapefruit is extra zesty and the rosemary greener and more woodsy. This gin is creamy, vibrant and perfect for a G&T, with a sprig of rosemary and a dried grapefruit slice. (Agnes Arber's Pineapple gin and Sipsmith's Chilli & Lime Gin were close runners-up in this category.)
Still GIN, 70cl
£31.25 at the Whisky Exchange£34.99 at Master of Malt
You're allowed to be sceptical about Snoop Dogg and Dr Dre making a gin – but brilliantly, it's decent. Designed to be smooth enough to drink straight up (though surely they'd approve of some juice), this is a very gentle, harmonious gin, with a soft balance of orange citrus fruit, jasmine flower and angelica root, dialling down on the juniper. It's copper pot-stilled, which distils more slowly and evenly – accounting for the extra smoothness. I genuinely enjoyed sipping it straight with plenty of ice (go for bigger ice cubes to avoid dilution) and a garnish of orange peel.
Hendrick's gin, 70cl
£33 at Waitrose Cellar£25.98 at Amazon
Is Hendrick's unusual? Not so much these days, now craft gins are doing all sorts of things – but it was one of the first to do things a bit differently. The brand still occupies this space, and it does it well. Hendrick's is made in an unusual way too: two base spirits are created in different stills – one rich, one delicate – before both are infused with classic gin botanicals, along with less classic ingredients such as chamomile, elderflower and cubeb berries (like allspice). The spirits are then blended and steeped in rose and cucumber, which provide the prominent top notes of the finished product. The original serve – with tonic and sliced cucumber – continues to hold up, and is still the most refreshing G&T for summer.
Joanne Gould is a food, drink and lifestyle writer with a decade of experience. As well as enthusiastically eating her way through London's best bars and restaurants, she's also a keen home cook and can often be found trying a new recipe or kitchen gadget, while taste-testing anything from South African wines to speciality coffee or scotch. Luckily, she also enjoys walking, running and keeping fit and healthy in her spare time – for balance