Aromas of fennel, holy basil (tulsi), and rose petals greet you when you first encounter TERAI Gin. From liquid to label, this modern Indian gin rooted in the London Dry style flaunts its Indianness inside out.
TERAI India Dry Gin from India Craft Spirit Co. managed to set a new benchmark for homegrown craft spirits. With an emphasis on craft and provenance, TERAI draws inspiration from the strip of fertile marshland running along the foothills of the Himalayas (terai in Hindi), a region where the founders (the Swarup family of Globus Spirits) have a long history of agriculture and distillation.
The gin is produced in the family-owned boutique distillery, located in Behror, Rajasthan. It is one of the only single-brand gin distilleries with a one-of-a-kind boutique craft distillery experience in India. The distillery houses a custom German-made copper pot-still.
Distillation is done in the custom German handmade Carl GmbH copper pot-still, the first of its pedigree in the country, using the traditional and rare ‘one-shot’ distillation method to create an authentic London Dry style gin.
Shekhar Swarup, Founder of TERAI gin, explains its uniqueness and craft. “We wanted to preserve the sanctity of the land and its people while creating a contemporary gin with a uniquely Indian flavour, profile, and character. The base spirit for TERAI is pure rice-grain spirit created in-house and infused with eleven botanicals mainly sourced from Khari Baoli in New Delhi, the largest spice market in Asia,” he says.
Primary notes of tulsi or basil, coriander, fennel, lemon peel, orange peel, lavender, rose, almond, angelica, and orris root offer vibrant characters, making it an aromatic gin. The sweet aromas are complemented with drier, traditional gin spices and Juniper berries.
The TERAI bottle is entirely custom-created, paying tribute to Indian culture. The form of the glass bottle is reflective of pillars—a big part of ancient Indian architecture—and the intricate label design with a ‘wreath of botanicals’ is inspired by vintage Indian coins found while perusing the Swarup family’s numismatic collection. Lacquered stoppers made with locally sourced wood and natural vegetable dyes that crown each bottle use the skill of artisans from Channapatna, Karnataka. Channapatna is known as the land of toys in India, as it is popular for its wooden toys.
TERAI has been consciously raising awareness around sustainability and carefully curating the brand story. From selecting merchandise (handcrafted aprons made of jute that is 100 per cent biodegradable and recyclable) by collaborating with homegrown brands to honouring the community of bartenders with a limited release handcrafted yellow stopper, it has managed to create a buzz across markets.
“Artistry and craftsmanship are at the core of TERAI, and with this initiative, we want to extend our appreciation to bartenders and make everyone aware of the true art form that bartending is,” says Swarup.
Just 2,000 TERAI <3 BARTENDERS (special edition) bottles are produced and available in Delhi, Mumbai, and Jaipur at selected retail stores from August onwards. The neck tag on each bottle holds a QR code that grants access to 15 one-of-a-kind, easy-to-make cocktails gathered from top bartenders across the country.
TERAI <3 BARTENDERS is part of the larger community-building TERAI heart series, where the brand periodically releases a limited-edition bottle to spotlight matters that they believe in. It is the second in the series to be launched, the first being the collectible bottles of TERAI with purple stoppers to commemorate the Women’s History Month in March 2021. Through this initiative, TERAI contributed the proceeds from sales to Khoj International Artists’ Association to support women artists and their livelihood.
Launched in 2020, TERAI Gin has expanded its base at a rapid pace. Swarup adds, “We are available in Delhi, Mumbai, Kolkata, UP, and Rajasthan. By year-end, we are going to be present in Haryana as well as Goa. Not to forget that we are also selling in Singapore and are expanding our presence in Hong Kong shortly.”
Around 1,000 cases per month (12,000 bottles of 750ml) of TERAI are produced at the distillery in Behror and priced at INR 1,890 in Delhi, INR 2,190 in Rajasthan, and INR 2,700 in Mumbai.
Speaking of the newly opened visitor centre of TERAI Gin, Swarup says, “There is nothing quite like tasting a spirit at its source. Seeing the ingredients, the systems, the intricacies, and the faces and hands behind the liquid add a wholly elevated understanding of what’s in the bottle. From its inception, The India Craft Spirit distillery, TERAI’s home, has been designed to welcome friends.”
Interestingly, spirits tourism is still limited in India. Barring a handful of whisky and gin distilleries in Goa, in western India, TERAI is the only distillery open to outside visitors at the moment.
Swarup believes that the Indian gin market is in an exciting phase, where consumers are ready for a more unconventional style of gins at premium prices. “The Indian craft spirit consumer is currently extremely experimental, and they are always on the hunt for new flavours and new experiences. Considering that India has a wealth of botanicals in the future, we will see more unconventional styles emerging. Consumers today not only understand but also support the spirit of craft.”
TERAI’s lush herbaceous palate with mild juniper notes may very well make it India’s first botanical spirit (in terms of flavour profile),with its devotion to the land and craft, making it a truly ‘grain-to-glass’ gin.
Rojita Tiwari is the Founder of Drinks & Destinations, a wine & spirits consulting firm in India. She is an award-winning drinks writer, educator, trainer & consultant, and a juror at several international wine, spirits & cocktail competitions. She is a Senior Specialist at International Drinks Specialist, the UK, and co-founder of Agents Of Cheer & Story In A Bottle, India’s foremost curated drinks events. Her Instagram handle is @rojitatiwari.
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