Bert Recour had been dreaming of developing his own gin for a while, but it was no easy feat: “We first had to look for a distillery that allowed us to work from our own recipe. After a long search, we found the ‘Peer De Korhaan’ distillery, which has been making jenever since 1833 – and now also gin. Then we had to find the right recipe. We wanted a gin that would be a tribute to our region and its hops.”
Bert visited a lot of hop growers and talked to different brewers to learn more about hops and how they could be used for his gin. “That’s not easy, as both gin and beer are fairly bitter (the latter due to the use of the juniper berries). We’ve been working on the right composition for a year. The end result is Gin ‘ops – a soft gin, with a good balance and yet a very distinct hop flavour,” he continues with pride. “Of course, gin is quite trendy these days but that was not my reason to create it. I wanted a drink that would remain popular, even if the current gin hype disappears.”
Want to taste Gin’ ops? It’s available online or at Poperinge’s Pegasus restaurant (EUR 39).
More info: http://www.ginops.be/en/