Sourcing botanicals for a commercial gin

Why commercial sourcing is different

At bench scale you pick botanicals by smell and you use what you have. At commercial scale you need the same aroma in every lot, a supplier who can deliver again next quarter and papers that show what you bought.

Juniper is the defining botanical. Gin is a neutral spirit flavoured predominantly with juniper, so your juniper supply is the one you cannot afford to get wrong. Most recipes also use coriander seed, angelica root, citrus peel and a fixer such as orris root, though your own recipe decides. Our guide on the cost of a bottle shows where botanicals sit in the sum.

Write a specification for each botanical

Do not buy by name alone. For each botanical, write down:

• The botanical name and the part used: berry, seed, root, peel.
• Origin or growing region, if it matters to your recipe.
• Appearance: whole or cut, colour, size, no mould or insects.
• Moisture, because wet material spoils and changes the weight you are paying for.
• Aroma against a reference sample you keep sealed.
• Food safety documents your jurisdiction and your customers expect.
• Pack size and shelf life.

Ask the supplier to certify each lot, then smell and inspect it yourself. A certificate does not replace a nose.

Natural variation is the enemy of consistency

Botanicals are crops. A juniper harvest from one season can smell different from the next. Citrus peel changes with the fruit and the way it was dried. Coriander seed from different origins can lean towards citrus or towards spice.

Manage that by buying larger lots when you find a good one. Keep a retained sample of each lot. Adjust loading in the still if a lot is stronger or weaker. Record the adjustment. Your distiller is then compensating on purpose, not by accident.

Where to buy and what to ask a supplier

Specialist botanical and spice traders, food ingredient suppliers and, for local botanicals, growers or cooperatives are the usual routes. Ask each supplier:

• Can you supply the same quality for the next twelve months?
• What is your minimum order and lead time?
• How do you dry, grade and pack the material?
• Can you supply a sample from the lot I will actually receive?
• What happens if a lot fails my specification?

If a botanical has to be imported, allow for lead time, import paperwork, duty and currency movement. Juniper in many countries is imported, so check before you design a recipe around it.

Local botanicals: a story and a risk

Local botanicals can give a gin a real sense of place. Cardamom, black pepper and lemongrass are widely grown in India, for example. But a story only works if supply is steady and the botanical behaves in the still. Test any new botanical across several runs. Check whether its aroma survives distillation, whether it dominates a recipe at larger loadings and whether you can buy enough of it. Then write the claim carefully (see a gin brand story that is true).

Storage and records

Store botanicals cool, dry, dark and sealed, away from the still room heat and from anything with a strong smell. Citrus peel and spices lose aroma quickly in a warm store. Label each container with lot, date received and supplier.

Keep a batch record that links each gin batch to the botanical lots used. If a customer complaint or a regulator question comes, you can trace it. This takes minutes per batch and is worth more than any later defence.

Goods-in checks and trials of new lots

When a sack arrives, do the same checks every time. Weigh it against the delivery note. Open it and look for mould, insects, dust and foreign matter. Smell it beside the retained reference. Note the date and lot on the container and in a log. Put a small sample in a sealed jar for your retained library.

If a lot fails, reject it in writing the same day, with photographs. A supplier takes a clear record more seriously than a phone call a month later. This routine is the quality-system habit that a brewery lab would call goods-in inspection. It costs almost nothing.

Never put an untried lot into a full batch on faith. Run a small bench distillation of the new lot beside the old, then compare the two on the nose and the palate, diluted to drinking strength. Taste responsibly, in small measures, with water to hand and with non-drinkers welcome to judge by aroma alone. If the new lot is weaker, raise the loading. If it is harsher, ask the supplier why.

Where this fits in your plan

Botanical sourcing belongs in your business plan as both a cost and a risk line. If you contract your distilling, put the botanical purchase and ownership in the agreement.

Common questions

Which botanical is most important?

Juniper, because gin must be flavoured predominantly with it. Everything else supports it.

Should I buy whole or ground botanicals?

Whole is the common choice for gin distilling because it keeps aroma longer and gives cleaner infusion. Your distiller's method and your recipe decide.

How much botanical stock should I hold?

Enough to cover your next few batches plus a reserve, but not so much that aroma fades. Store it well and rotate stock.

Do I need to test botanicals?

Inspect and smell every lot. For safety testing, follow the requirements where you sell and ask your supplier for lot documents.