Launching just in time as the drinks scene hots up once again thanks to relaxed pandemic restrictions in Singapore, Gain Brands International, which debuted the first in their own line of products – the Soulsister Spirits Gin – Singapore Edition – back in 2020, has now released the second spirit of the range.
Like its forebearer, the newly arrived Soulsister Spirits Gin – Melaka Edition is inspired by a region in Southeast Asia, where the company is based, making good use of botanicals and spices best known in that area as ingredients in their gins.
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The Melaka Edition thus incorporates the likes of candlenut, torch ginger, pomelo, sweet orange, cinnamon, clove, and nutmeg (as well as juniper, of course) in its make, resulting in a highly aromatic gin that is at once floral, warm, and citrusy.
It’s a familiar yet distinct nose and profile, making it approachable but with enough novel tones so that it has a character unlike anything you’d usually find from more commercial brands.
While they’ve recommended that the Melaka Edition gin is best enjoyed simply over ice or as a Gin & Tonic, we think that its aromatic layers lends itself well to making a Martini too, using a crisp vermouth such as Noilly Prat or Lillet Blanc as accompaniment.
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In making the gin, they’ve chosen to gypsy distil out of the City of Manchester Distillery, an award-winning craft producer in the UK, this time around.
There, the distiller, using a 500 litre pot still they affectionately call ‘Angel’, did a long distillation with reduced heat to slowly extract greater flavour from the ingredients.
The Soulsister Spirits Gin – Melaka Edition is available directly via Gain Brands’ online store, or from their partner retailers such as Shopee and FairPrice.
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