Smögen launches Strane gin uncut at 75.3% abv

An exceptionally strong ‘uncut’ London Dry Gin has been launched by Swedish distiller Smögen Whisky, and at 75.3% abv, it is possibly the strongest gin available in the UK. 

Strane is a handcrafted small batch gin created in a 100-litre pot still with worm tub condensers at the Smögen Distillery, one of the first distilleries in Sweden to produce single malt whisky.  Unusually, Strane is created by distilling three differently balanced base gins – junipery, citrusy and herbal – then blended to create different expressions in bottle: Merchant Strength 47.4% abv; Navy Strength 57.1% abv; and now Uncut. With the blending taking place before the addition of water, the distiller Pär Caldenby, knows how good ‘uncut’ gin tastes and noses. In his words “it is too good to hold back”, which inspired the release of Strane Uncut, the true Odin of gins and bottled in limited quantities at a mighty 75.3% vol.

While exceptionally strong, Pär Caldenby suggests savouring Strane Uncut neat, ice cold, in very small sips, with a glass of water on the side. It is a gin rich in juniper, lemon peel, sage and mint. As Robert Ransom at UK importer Highfern explains: “Strane Uncut is not an everyday gin, but a remarkable experience for serious gin lovers, and a marvellous addition to the Strane London Dry Gin family.”

Strane Uncut is now available to try at The Feathers Hotel in Oxford, the first bar outside Sweden to offer this extraordinary gin. A limited number of bottles are also available to purchase from Drinkfinder (Constantine Stores), Gauntleys of Nottingham and Master of Malt.

16 March 2015 - Felicity Murray The Drinks Report, editor