I read a piece on Dutch gin this year that piqued my interest. When I saw a green cylindrical bottle of
Bols gin on the shelf, I availed myself of it, especially with the $16.99 price label on it.
It was marvelous! Dutch gin does not have as heavy a juniper berry nose as London dry gin. Dutch gin is the original gin, known in Holland as "genever" (like "Juh-neeve-er").
I enthused to a few friends about this find. One informed me that Ray Charles had a rider in his concert contracts that a bottle of Bols gin be provided backstage before each show. Before one of Ray Charles' concerts in Memphis years ago, it was discovered the Bols gin had not been provided. My friend had to go all over downtown looking for a bottle of Bols, finally found one in its original old crockery container on a dusty liquor store shelf, and rushed it back to the show. Ray had his drink; and the show went on.
After enjoying the smoothness and subtlety of the
Bols in gin and tonics for a while instead of my usual screwdrivers, I faced an emptying bottle with some dismay. I went all over town looking for another green bottle of $17
Bols but came up empty-handed. I resorted to this wonderful Internet and discovered that Bols had repackaged its genever gin and renamed it
Damrak Amsterdam Gin. I went back to the largest whiskey store in Tennessee, took a closer look at their stock, and discovered two bottles of
Damrak at $31.49 apiece. The green bottle that had spoiled me must have been on the shelf for years at $17. Like a dope, I only bought one of the
Damraks. When that bottle met and surpassed my expectations, I spread the news to a few more friends about this repackaged
Bols, which was sort of a mistake, because when I went back for the last remaining bottle of
Damrak in the city, it was gone. The manager called the wholesaler while I was there and was told it would be mid-October before the
wholesaler got any more
Damrak in. OK, so they had one other brand unknown to me,
Zuidam Genever Gin. I'll update this post once I test it out. In case you think I'm a minority of one about this product, I share this first-in-the-list appraisal from
Toast of Any Town: The 12 Most Unforgettable Gins, by
Robert Plotkin, president of the National Bar & Restaurant Management Association:
Ultra-premium DAMRAK AMSTERDAM GIN is crafted from a proprietary recipe dating back to the early 1700s. It combines 17 fruits, berries, herbs and spices, each individually distilled to lock in the flavor and fragrance. The spirit base of the gin is made from grain and malt, which after it has been infused with botanicals, undergoes a total of 5 distillations. The gin is bottled at 83.6 proof.
In every respect, Damrak Amsterdam Gin is absolutely superb. It has pristine clarity and a lightweight, silky smooth body. The generous bouquet is a captivating array of floral, citrus and herbal aromas. Initially, the flavor of luscious juniper berries is most prevalent on the palate, followed by a surge of the tart, zesty flavors of the botanical mix. The gin has a crisp and flavorful finish.
UPDATE: OK, the
Zuidam Genever Gin has less flavor than the
Damrak -- it's too close to vodka.
UPDATE: OK, Bols has brought out what they're billing as an "updated original"
Bols Genever (not even calling it gin), whatever that means. It sounds interesting if you look on
their site about it; and of course I'd like to try it if the dudes at Buster's can get it in...that, and the
Damrak. Let me provide the contact info. Here's the site with the
contact info for Damrak. Contact info for the new Bols Genever is at the preceding link. OK, Hoover and Stuart, you're on the spot now. Get both of these in. Oh, and if you'd like to take a stab at Bols' other Genever brands available in Holland (and I bet at some super-hip store in New York City),
this link might work. Heh heh.
