Alright continuing our last week of gin coverage with Uncle Val’s we have another offering that looks good in the bar, but is bad in the glass. Boodles looks spot-on for what you’d expect from a British gin, but it also tastes like the British gins you’ve heard the horror stories about.
We are having a bit of a lark here. In honesty this isn’t nearly as bad as we said above the fold, but it’s not great folks. Also unlike Uncle Val’s last week this doesn’t work well mixed either which would at least make it more redeemable. So the next time you see this gin for a low cost – know you might not be getting your monies worth.
What they Say: “Warranted to Proof. 100% Grain Neutral Spirits. To appreciate Boodles fine flavour use sparingly.”
Taste: 4.0 – It starts off clean for just a millisecond, but it leads into that lingering ‘London Dry Gin’ taste that you’d get with any cheap LDG.
Aftertaste: 4.0 – That taste continues, and there’s only a small reprieve at the end where the flavor of the gin gets some mellowness. Overall this is like a sandwich made with fresh bread and spoiled meat and cheese.
Burn/Smooth: 5.0 – There is little burn here and if it wasn’t the taste this would be going down rather smooth. It has affected that smoothness.
Aroma: 6.5 – The complaint here is that this is just a bit too weak. It’s not bad in that regard nor does it feel watered-down. The problem is that it’s crisp and clean, but otherwise lacking in a large amount of flavor to make it great.
Honesty: 7.5 – They don’t wank at all, or say much of anything. The look is very clean, bottle design and text is perfect. Overall this looks like a fantastic gin (it’s not). On that alone we need to give it high scores because they’ve not overdone it, or shoot themselves in the foot. Also Boodles sounds like what you would call your scottish terrier.
Mixability: 4.5
Martini: 4.5 – Just not a good martini.
Gin and Tonic: 4.5 – So to be very clear. This is not ‘tasteless’ within the tonic. It is however still bland in a way unlike other gins which can often disappear into the cocktail. Not bad therefore, but certainly not par or above.
Value: 5.0 – Not to sound heretical, but for what you would buy in a store for gin this having that price point seems like a deal. It’s not a good deal though which is sad.
Google Shop Average: $20
Website: http://www.boodlesgin.com/
Reviewer Scores:
BuffaloJern: 4.0
Want to compare this spirit against our archives? Visit our statistics page.
Metric Score: 36.5/70 |+| Metric Average: 5.21 |+| Reviewer Average: 4.0
New to Honest Booze Reviews, or just wondering how we score? See our FAQ/Review Policy.
Final Thoughts: The reviewer score is a bit lower, but I feel lied too. I wasn’t expecting perfection. I went into the establishment knowing – okay let’s get something lower, and something higher. This was meant to be the higher, but unlike Eddy Grant it can’t take me higher.
Or $20 I get a handle of Seagrams gin. Value for boodles isn’t that bad is it ? I’d like to find out what’s the best value for the dollar in a 750 or liter bottle.
I’m creating the best Negroni for the buck.