Wellmade Again Gin Recipe

Prepare botanicals

Weigh and lightly crush the juniper berries and coriander seeds. Chop or break larger roots and bark into small pieces so flavors extract evenly. Zest lemon and orange carefully to avoid white pith; reserve peels.

In a clean, non-reactive glass or stainless-steel container, combine 0.5 L neutral grain spirit with all botanicals listed under 'Botanical maceration'. Stir briefly to ensure botanicals are submerged in spirit.

Seal the container and macerate at cool room temperature (18–22°C / 64–72°F) for 24 hours. Gently agitate once or twice during this period to improve extraction. For a brighter citrus top note, limit maceration to 18–24 hours; for warmer, more resinous character, extend to 36 hours but not more than 48 hours.

If distilling

Transfer the macerated spirit and botanicals (including solids) into a small pot still (or an appropriate home still) and slowly heat. Collect heads until ABV of the distillate drops to about 85% (discard heads approx. 0–50 ml per 500 ml depending on still and taste). Then collect the heart cut as the ABV falls from ~85% down to ~60–65% — this is the flavorful heart fraction. Stop collection when the distillate tastes overly vegetal or when ABV drops below ~60%. Combine the hearts from your run; yield will be roughly 350–420 ml depending on cuts.

If cold compounding (no still)

After maceration, strain the spirit through a fine mesh and then a coffee filter or cheesecloth to remove solids. The resulting infused spirit is a gin compound; note that it will lack some of the volatile distillate brightness but will still be well balanced for cocktails.

If you used a still: filter the collected hearts through a fine muslin, then through activated charcoal if you want to slightly soften harsh notes and remove color (use the optional 0.5 g activated charcoal mixed into ~50 ml of distilled water, pass distillate over it, then filter). If cold compounded: filter the macerated spirit thoroughly through coffee filters to clarifying.

Measure the concentrated spirit volume and ABV. Typical heart distillate will be ~350–420 ml at ~65–80% ABV depending on your cuts and still. Calculate dilution to target bottling strength of 42% ABV. Example dilution method: take final heart spirit (assume 400 ml at 70% ABV) and slowly add filtered water while gently stirring until reach 42% ABV. Use a spirit hydrometer or alcoholmeter to be precise. If starting with cold compound (approx 48–55% ABV depending on starting spirit and maceration), dilute with filtered water to 42% ABV in the same way.

After reaching target ABV, rest the gin for 24–72 hours in a sealed container at cool temperature to let flavors marry. Taste after 24 hours; if citrus or floral top notes feel muted, rest up to 72 hours before final filtration and bottling.

Final filtration: pass the gin through a coffee filter or fine filter to remove any residual particulate and any charcoal fines. Bottle in clean, sterilized bottles, cap, and label.

Serve Wellmade Again Gin chilled in classic gin cocktails to showcase balance: 1) Gin & tonic with a grapefruit twist and a sprig of lavender; 2) Martini (dry) with a lemon twist; 3) Aviation-style cocktail to highlight floral and citrus notes. Store in a cool, dark place; best enjoyed within 12–18 months for brightest botanical character.