Nearly nine months after selling her Over-the-Rhine cocktail lounge Japp's, mixologist Molly Wellmann is back celebrating the city she loves. This time with the release of Cincinnati Gin, a new spirit made with botanicals sourced straight from Krohn Conservatory and distilled by Northern Row Brewery's Five Stories Spirits, in Over-the-Rhine.
"I had the idea to make a Cincinnati-style gin using botanicals from Krohn for a long time," Wellmann told The Enquirer. "But first I wanted to find a local distillery that knew how to make a really good gin." While there are several reputable gin distilleries here in town, Wellmann said Five Stories seemed the most ready and willing to work with her. "I friggin' love their gin," she said. "And they love Cincinnati history just like I do."
To set the wheels in motion, Wellmann and Five Stories master distiller Josh Quattlebaum met with Krohn Conservatory director Mark House, who gave them a tour and pointed out all of the edible botanicals that could be infused into a gin. Not long afterward, Quattlebaum started playing around with them, sending Wellmann samples for her approval.
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"Josh is really the one who put it all together," Wellmann said. "And it's beautiful." She describes Cincinnati Gin as ginger forward, with floral notes courtesy of Krohn-grown juniper, lime and bay leaves and notes of mandarin orange peel, all rounded out with vanilla and cocoa nibs. Adding to the gin's Cincinnati cred is the bottle's label, which was done by local illustrator Robin Carnes. "The label is a work of art itself," Wellmann said.
Wellmann said she first got the idea for creating a conservatory-inspired gin while reading Amy Stewart's 2013 book, "The Drunken Botanist: The Plants that Create the World's Great Drinks."
"In it, (Stewart) wrote about how, when you go into a liquor store, it's like walking into a plant store," Wellmann said, adding that all of the various bottles you see at the former "are different forms of plants."
Cincinnati Gin will be released on April 28 at Northern Row Brewery's taproom in Over-the-Rhine. It will also be available at Arrow Wine and Spirits, in Mason, both Jungle Jim's locations in Fairfield and Eastgate and two Kroger locations (in Hyde Park on Paxton Avenue, and in Dent on Harrison Avenue). While the price isn't set in stone yet, Wellmann says it will likely cost around $35 per bottle.
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