Tab Dancer – Engel Juniper Uno Gin
At the end of June 2026, I visited my friend Manuel at his summer party, where he let me try his new gin. The Juniper Uno is made using only foraged Italian juniper. Obviously, I had to try the gin alongside another new eau de vie in a White Negroni variation.
Manuel uses organic neutral grain spirit and wild-harvested juniper berries from Umbria to make this gin. He distils the gin and bottles it at 42% ABV. However, Manuel also makes a wormwood eau de vie now. He grows the wormwood in his own herb garden.
Surprisingly complex
The Juniper Uno begins with resinous juniper notes. Soon afterwards, these are accompanied by some citrus flavours and a touch of lavender. I also detected hints of cacao, fir needles and earthy notes. All in all, the distillate is surprisingly complex for a single botanical gin.
Really just a White Negroni
Besides the wormwood eau de vie, my recipe is essentially just a White Negroni. I only added a few drops of saline solution to finish it off, too. Just a quick side note: I use Chartreuse’s excellent gentian liqueur in my White Negronis.
1 Bsp. Engel Wormwood Eau de Vie
3 cl Chartreuse Gentiane
3 cl Gölles Semi-Dry Vermouth
Stir – strain – chilled Double Old-Fashioned glass over large ice cube;
Garnish: Orange Slice;
Song: Local Natives – Tap Dancer;
The earthy flavour of the wormwood eau de vie blends perfectly with the earthy bitterness of the gentian liqueur. The flavours of the gin blend in nicely, too. The drink is obviously quite bitter, but fans of the Negroni and/or White Negroni will love this variation!
*The fact that I received a product reviewed in this article for free, did not – in any way – influence the rating of said product. I received the gin and eau de vie for free from Engel Naturbrennerei.
