If you, like me, name gin as your drink of choice, a toast to you. And if you don’t, well, Zephyr Gin is out to change that.
The Dallas-based spirits brand concocts its premium gin in a historic distillery across the pond—specifically the oldest-working copper pot in Birmingham, U.K.—during a three-day batch distillation process that introduces previously unsteeped botanicals from around the world (like elderberry, coriander, angelica root, lemon peel, and juniper) to English wheat grain.
The result is an 80-proof liquor both crisp and smooth and one that doesn’t scream “gin.” Especially when it’s mixed with other cocktail components like lemon juice, honey syrup, mint leaves, or Prosecco.
“Are we sure this is gin?” I asked a friend upon tasting one such aperitif at last month’s Houston launch in OKRA Charity Saloon. Indeed it was, and decidedly unfamiliar enough to win over said friend, a non-gin drinker who’d been hesitant to try it in the first place. Unlike other juniper-forward gins, this one felt like a blank canvas for the rest of the cocktail, less piney or licorice-adjacent than I was expecting, and certainly not overwhelming.
That said, Zephyr still offers something for the gin aficionados who need no convincing of the spirit’s eminence: Zephyr Black is the traditional, dry, ultra-premium, 88-proof variety influenced by elderberry and elderflower.
OKRA bartenders poured the stuff all night for the Houston market debut that drew executives, influencers, and notable reps from the food and beverage industry alike. Taste it for yourself at any of the Houston bars now stocking it: Star Fish, Darwin’s, Heights Bier Garten, Eight Row Flint, Ka Sushi, Johnny’s Gold Brick, Hughie’s Cocktail Bar, South Bank Seafood Bar, The Davenport Lounge, McElroy’s Pub, Shay McElroy’s Irish Pub, OKRA, Prohibition Supperclub, Weights + Measures, and Etro.
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