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Arbutus Distillery Forest Dweller Gin

February 19, 2025

Gin Spirits
4 min reading time

TL;DR: A wild, woodsy gin infused with foraged botanicals from Vancouver Island’s forests, delivering terroir in a glass.

Arbutus Distillery’s Forest Dwellers Gin is a tribute to the untamed landscapes of Vancouver Island. Crafted with hand-foraged botanicals from the surrounding forests, this gin captures the essence of the Pacific Northwest with deep, resinous pine notes, fresh greenery with the underpinnings of their Empirical Gin. Unlike traditional citrus-forward gins, Forest Dwellers leans into the woody, wild side of botanicals, making it a complex and evocative spirit.

 

Flavor Camp Taste Profile

Overall Review

  • Overall Assessment: 79/100
  • Distinctiveness: 9/10
  • Bottle Appeal: 7/10
  • Value for Price: 7/10
  • Crushable / Daily Drinker
  • Cocktail Worthy
  • Special Occasion Sipper
  • Weird & Wonderful
  • Skip It

Tasting Notes

  • Appearance: Clear, clean
  • Aroma: Pine and cedar jump out on the nose immediately, which amplifies the juniper and grapefruit-like notes. The base distillate has some character to it, almost a lactic or yogurt note.
  • Taste & Mouthfeel: This is truly a west coast forest in a glass; lots of spruce and pine tips with citrus, a slight sweetness and a touch of acetaldehyde bite.
  • Finish: The finish is creamy on the palate; the pine lingers.
  • Distinctiveness: Incredibly distinctive! This would be super interesting in a cocktail as the base spirit.
  • Overall Drinkability & Balance: The nature of this gin is to showcase the forest and it certainly does that. We love the idea of showcasing terroir in a gin, but because of its intensity, it lacks versatility and may not be for everyone! However, if you like herbaceous cocktails, this is definitely the gin for you.

Product Details

  • Distiller: Arbutus Distillery
  • Type: Gin
  • Origin: Nanaimo (Vancouver Island), BC, Canada
  • ABV: 40.0%
  • Botanicals: Spruce Tips, Douglas Fir, Pine, and other botanicals
  • Price: $40-45 CAD (2025)
Comments / Notes:

Three things to remember about this gin:

Locally Foraged Botanicals: The Forest Dweller Gin is crafted using hand-picked botanicals from the forests of Vancouver Island, including Grand Fir tips, pine, spruce, and other botanicals.

Coniferous Aging Process: This gin is a special version of their west coast Empiric Gin, rested on Grand Fir tips, pine, spruce, and other botanicals, imparting unique coniferous flavors.

Award Recognition: In 2020, the Forest Dweller Gin received a gold medal with ‘excellence in terroir’ at the Canadian Artisan Spirit Competition, highlighting its quality and regional character.

Food Pairing Recommendations: Steak or Smoked Salmon

Cocktail Recommendation: Forest Dweller Fizz or Coastal Grove

Forest Dweller Fizz Recipe:

Ingredients:

  • 1 oz Arbutus Forest Dweller Gin
  • 0.25 oz Baba Yaga Absinthe 
  • 1 oz Lime Juice 
  • 0.75 oz Simple Syrup 
  • 1 Egg White

Instructions:

  1. In a cocktail shaker with ice add the Forest Dweller Gin, lemon juice, simple syrup and egg white and shake enthusiastically.
  2. Double strain and garnish with your choice of botanicals.
Coastal Grove Cocktail Recipe:

Ingredients:

  • 2 oz Arbutus Forest Dweller Gin
  • ¾ oz Fresh Grapefruit Juice
  • ½ oz Dry Vermouth (or Cocchi Americano for a touch of bitterness)
  • ½ oz Thyme & Cedar Honey Syrup (recipe below)
  • 2 dashes Celery Bitters
  • 1 pinch Sea Salt (enhances forest notes)
  • Garnish: Grapefruit Twist & Thyme Sprig

Instructions:

  1. Add gin, grapefruit juice, dry vermouth, thyme & cedar honey syrup, bitters, and a pinch of sea salt to a shaker with ice.
  2. Shake until well chilled and strain into a chilled coupe or Nick & Nora glass.
  3. Express the oils from a grapefruit twist over the drink, then drop it in as a garnish.
  4. Add a sprig of fresh thyme for aroma.

Thyme & Cedar Honey Syrup Recipe:

  • ½ cup Honey
  • ½ cup Hot Water
  • 2 sprigs Fresh Thyme
  • 1 small piece Cedar (or use a drop of cedarwood extract)
  1. Stir honey and hot water until fully mixed.
  2. Add thyme and cedar, letting it infuse for at least 30 minutes.
  3. Strain and store in the fridge for up to 2 weeks.
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