Guillaume Drouin Creates Christian Drouin Gin
At the helm of Christian Drouin Calvados, Guillaume Drouin is the third generation of a family long passionate about finding the perfect balance of aromas and flavors.
An oenologist and agronomist by training, curious and enthusiastic, his passion for the world of aromas, tasting, and the art of blending soon led him to a new creative project: crafting a Gin using apples from his orchards. Given its production method and the number of botanicals involved, Gin is arguably the spirit offering the broadest possible spectrum of composition—a nearly infinite creative field and a richly captivating challenge to create a harmony between apples, juniper, and botanicals from around the world.
Christian Drouin Gin — An Original Recipe
The starting point was to find botanicals that could complement and enhance the balance of juniper and cider apples. After distilling numerous botanicals separately, a final selection of eight plants was made, all except juniper coming from the aromatic world of a great Calvados.
The next step was to discover how to create harmony between these eight aromas, much like preparing a grand blend: finding the right proportions, adjusting the recipe. Ultimately, it became clear this method only allows for “small batch” production—the plant-by-plant distillation process requires constant adjustment of proportions to achieve the best blend.
Christian Drouin Gin is made from neutral alcohol flavored with a cider distillate produced from over 30 cider apple varieties, which are classified as bitter, bittersweet, sweet, and sharp.
To produce Christian Drouin Gin, nine separate distillations of each ingredient are required. This method extracts the quintessence of each botanical used.
Christian Drouin Gin, Calvados Cask
Drawing on its expertise in aging eaux-de-vie, the Drouin family decided to age a limited volume of their Gin.
Several old 225-liter Calvados barrels were selected to mature Christian Drouin Gin.
After more than a year of aging, the new Gin gains depth. Rounder and more complex, the apple aromas are further enhanced in this version called Le Gin de Christian Drouin, Calvados Cask Finish.
Christian Drouin Gin, Carmina
Following the launch of Le Gin de Christian Drouin in 2015, Guillaume Drouin crafted a new blend dedicated to red fruits.
Carmina is made following the same principles as the original Gin: each botanical is macerated and redistilled separately to optimize aroma extraction. The distillates are then blended before bottling. This time, the bouquet is summery, combining flowers and fruits with raspberry, blackcurrant, elderflower, vanilla, lemon, and orange alongside juniper and Normandy cider apple varieties.
The Carmina packaging retains the identity of Le Gin de Christian Drouin but with a carmine red color code, reflecting the dominant aromatic profile of this particularly indulgent Gin with raspberry and blackcurrant notes.
Christian Drouin Gin, Pira
In this new edition, the perry pear takes center stage in the recipe, combined with juniper, vanilla, lemon, black pepper, and iris root—the flower that adorns the roofs of Normandy’s thatched cottages.
Pira is made following the same principles as the original Gin: each botanical is macerated and redistilled separately to optimize aroma extraction. The distillates are then blended before bottling. To preserve the subtle aroma of the perry pear, only a limited combination of ingredients is used in this recipe.
Alongside the apple, the pear is another emblematic fruit of Normandy. In the Pays d’Auge, pear trees are generally planted along the edges of apple orchards. These tall trees, which can reach over 15 meters high with deep roots, serve as excellent windbreaks for the more fragile apple trees. Normandy pear trees can live up to 300 years. The perry pear is a small fruit with a subtle aroma, combining acidity and tannins. With Pira, Guillaume wanted to highlight this historic fruit of their region.
