Monkey 47

Monkey 47 Gin is distilled with 47 handpicked botanicals and spring water from Germany’s Black Forest, aged in traditional earthenware containers before bottling. Core expressions include Dry Gin (bright citrus, peppery spice, floral complexity), Sloe Gin (wild sloe berries, rich and fruity), and annual limited-edition Distiller’s Cut bottlings featuring seasonal botanicals.

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Frequently Asked Questions

Why does Monkey 47 use 47 botanicals when most gins use 6–12?

Most London Dry gins use a small botanical bill — typically 6–12 botanicals — where each ingredient plays a clearly audible role in the flavor. The craft ethos is restraint: fewer botanicals, better balance, more legible flavors. Monkey 47 takes the opposite approach: 47 botanicals from three continents including Black Forest lingonberries, exotic spices, and rare aromatic plants. The result is a gin where no single botanical dominates — instead the flavor is layered, complex, and difficult to parse into individual components. Critics of the high-botanical approach argue it produces muddiness; advocates argue it produces a depth and texture that restrained gins cannot achieve. Monkey 47’s market success suggests the complexity is legible to consumers even if not analytically dissectable.

What is earthenware aging and what does it do to gin?

After distillation, Monkey 47 rests in small earthenware (ceramic) containers before bottling — not in wood barrels as aged spirits are, but in clay vessels that allow minimal oxygen exchange without imparting wood flavors. The earthenware aging rounds the spirit slightly, integrating the 47 botanicals and softening any sharp edges from distillation without adding the vanilla, caramel, or tannin character that oak would introduce. The result is a gin that drinks smoother than its botanical complexity might suggest, without the color or wood notes of a barrel-rested gin.