JCB Gin Jean-Charles Boisset Burgundy France 750ml

Gin is the most complex and the most evocative beverage on the market. That conviction belongs to Jean-Charles Boisset, who grew up in the village of Vougeot in Burgundy's Côte de Nuits, became one of the wine world's most internationally recognized figures — named to Decanter's Power List of the fifty most important people in the wine world every year of its publication since 2007 — and then decided, in 2018, that the most interesting thing he could do with the world's most aromatic wine grapes was to distill them into gin.

The JCB Gin begins exactly where the JCB Pure Vodka begins: Pinot Noir and Chardonnay grapes hand-selected from the Côte-d'Or, fermented individually in French oak barrels, distilled in the same copper pot and column process that produces the vodka. But then, where the vodka stops, the gin begins: the distilled Burgundian grape spirit is infused with juniper, roses, coriander, and the extracts of 44 specifically chosen botanicals — including 30 certified organic plants drawn directly from the biodynamically farmed vineyard gardens on the Boisset property. Dandelion. Chamomile. Lemon balm. Calendula. Borage. Valerian. Stinging nettle. Honeysuckle. Yarrow. These are not commercial flavoring extracts purchased from a botanical supplier. They are the native flora of the Boisset estate itself, grown under biodynamic certification on the same soil that produces the grapes.

The Spirit Journal awarded JCB Gin 100 points. The Somm Journal confirmed: "essence of sunflower, lilacs, and verbena come to life on the nose as the liquid, dotted with white pepper and caper berries, melts across the palate — violets thread through the herbs for a spring garden effect throughout." This is what a biodynamic Burgundy estate tastes like when a visionary makes it into gin — a spring garden in a bottle, built on the most celebrated wine grape terroir in the world.

Origins & Craftsmanship

Jean-Charles Boisset was born in Vougeot, in Burgundy's Côte de Nuits, where he grew up above the cellars and within view of the centuries-old vineyards of Château du Clos Vougeot — the epicenter of Pinot Noir and Chardonnay production, planted by Cistercian monks in 1110. His parents, Jean-Claude and Claudine, founded the family winery in 1961 in Burgundy. Today the Boisset Collection encompasses 24 wineries and vineyards across France, Canada, and California, including DeLoach Vineyards in Santa Rosa, Buena Vista in Sonoma, and Raymond Vineyards in Rutherford, Napa Valley. Boisset has implemented organic and biodynamic farming across all estate vineyards — the same farming philosophy that supplies the botanical gardens whose plants go directly into JCB Gin.

JCB Spirits launched in November 2018 with an original production of approximately 2,400 bottles of gin — an extraordinarily small run that established the brand's luxury positioning from the outset. The bottling is produced in a heavy, decanter-style vessel manufactured by Saverglass and styled after similar vessels from the 18th and 19th centuries, the same weighted bottle used for JCB Pure Vodka.

The production of JCB Gin follows the same path as JCB Pure Vodka through the distillation stage: Pinot Noir and Chardonnay grapes are hand-selected from Côte-d'Or estate vineyards, sorted by hand, fermented individually in French oak barrels for six months, blended and allowed to meld, then distilled through copper pot and column stills. At this point, the gin diverges from the vodka: the distilled grape spirit is infused with the full 44-botanical blend, including 30 certified organic plants drawn from the biodynamically farmed Boisset estate gardens. The botanical profile is specifically and intentionally inspired by the London Dry style — juniper at the foundation, alongside roses and coriander — while drawing its most specifically unusual and the most memorably distinctive character from the estate-grown biodynamic herbs: chamomile, honeysuckle, dandelion, calendula, borage, valerian, stinging nettle, lemon balm, yarrow, cardamom, cinnamon, white pepper, and caper berries, among others.

Critics Reviews

Spirit Journal — 100 Points

The Somm Journal (confirmed extended review):
"JCB Gin is enhanced by the native flora that grows in the biodynamically farmed vineyard and gardens on the Boisset property. Dandelion, chamomile, lemon balm, and more than 40 other botanicals (including 30 organic plants) are infused into this London Dry-style gin. Essence of sunflower, lilacs, and verbena come to life on the nose as the liquid, dotted with white pepper and caper berries, melts across the palate. Violets thread through the herbs for a spring garden effect throughout."

Robb Report (confirmed):
"The gin was inspired by the dry London style and derived from 44 plants. The juniper is subtle and is blended with everything from cardamom to cinnamon and coriander to chamomile. Boisset believes that gin is the most interesting beverage on the market because it is so complex and evocative."

JCB / Boisset Collection official:
"The biodynamic herbs in our gin are known to be the best for the human body, and the most incredible contributor to health: chamomile, honeysuckle, dandelion, calendula, borage, valerian, stinging nettle, lemon balm and yarrow. One of the most extravagant gins, it is made from sustainably grown and exceptionally researched ingredients. JCB Gin has a certain savoir-faire — enjoy it pure or as part of your favorite cocktail. Our gin will leave you knowing that everything is possible."

Tasting Profile

Nose
A spring garden in a glass — the most immediately and the most specifically memorable single characterization of JCB Gin's aromatic profile, the estate-grown biodynamic botanicals arriving in the glass with a freshness and a specificity that commercial botanical extracts simply cannot replicate. Sunflower, lilacs, and verbena lead the most prominently floral aromatic dimension. Violets thread through the herbs with a delicate, persistent purple-flower quality that carries from first sniff through every subsequent impression. Chamomile adds the most calming and the most pastoral herbal secondary note. Roses add a warm, specifically romantic floral layer alongside the more vegetal herbs. Lemon balm and coriander add citrus brightness and herbal freshness. Juniper is present but subtle — the London Dry inspiration restrained here in favor of the botanical complexity that makes JCB Gin genuinely different from any other expression in the category.

Palate
The liquid melts across the palate in the most specifically and the most memorably silky way — the Pinot Noir and Chardonnay grape base's most directly palate-apparent contribution in a density and a richness that grain-based gins cannot provide. White pepper and caper berries arrive with an unexpected savory, briny complexity that punctuates the botanical garden character from the nose. Chamomile, lemon balm, and dandelion carry their herbal freshness through the mid-palate. Cardamom and cinnamon add warm, exotic spice that deepens without dominating.

Finish
Spring garden throughout — the violets and herbs carrying the most persistent and the most specific floral-herbal finish available in any premium gin currently in the category. The juniper's delicate resinous quality appears most distinctly on the finish, providing structure without bitterness. Long, clean, and perfumed.

Quick Overview

Cocktail Suggestions

JCB Garden Martini
2.5 oz JCB Gin · ½ oz dry vermouth · violet petal or rose garnish. The most specifically and the most elegantly appropriate serve — the floral botanical complexity producing a Martini of genuinely unusual beauty.

JCB Gin & Tonic
1.5 oz JCB Gin · 3 oz premium tonic · rose petal and white pepper garnish. The tonic's quinine bitterness frames the botanical garden complexity, the pepper and caper berries finding natural affinity with the tonic's own herbal bitterness.

JCB Negroni
1 oz JCB Gin · 1 oz Campari · 1 oz sweet vermouth · expressed orange peel. The floral and herb complexity adds a genuinely unusual aromatic dimension to the classic Negroni format.

Neat and Chilled
Served from the freezer in a chilled coupe — the most specifically revelatory presentation of the 44-botanical profile at its most concentrated and its most perfumed.