Comte de Grasse releases perfume-inspired gin

by Melita Kiely

French distiller Comte de Grasse – The Lab Distillery has launched its inaugural product, Comte de Grasse 44°N Gin, which has been made using “perfume extraction techniques”.

The gin is made using ultrasonic maceration, vacuum distillation and CO2 supercritical extraction, which are said to use “substantially” less energy and natural resources than traditional gin distillation. Created by master scientist and innovator Marie-Anne Contamin, the gin is bottled at 44% abv and is available to purchase from the distillery in Grasse, in the Côte d’Azur, at an RRP of €75 (US$85) per 500ml bottle. Only 1,500 bottles have been released ahead of Christmas. The following botanicals are macerated and distilled during the gin’s production: cade, bitter orange, verbena, everlasting, rose, alexanders, samphire, honey, juniper, angelica, coriander, lemon and orris. Meanwhile, these botanicals undergo CO2 supercritical extraction from essences: everlasting, lavender, mimosa, rose, grapefruit, jasmine, patchouli and pepper Sichuan. Bhagath Reddy, CEO and founder of Comte de Grasse, said: “Here in Grasse we are blessed not only with fertile lands for growing intriguing and rare botanicals, but also extraordinary people with gifted knowledge all contributing to the creation of 44oN. “Our shared ambition to work together in creating methods of production that best serve our local environment, both social and physical, has been a real success of Comte de Grasse. “Utilising practices from the perfume industry for producing our gin has resulted in a flavour like nothing else we’ve tasted. On the nose, bright, tangy lemon and grapefruit give way to lovely seaside sentiments from the samphire. “The unmistakable woody characteristics of the cade is the juniper calling. A deep floral body follows with jammy facets of the native bitter orange tempered by herbaceous angelica and warm pepper rounding off the middle notes.”