Echo Spirits to debut Genever

Written by on October 28, 2020 in Liquor - No comments

Echo Spirits Distilling Co will debut their newest spirit on Monday — Genever.

Owners Joe Bidinger and Nikhil Sharoff first stumbled upon the uncommon sprit in 2013 while in Belgium when Bidinger’s cousin suggested they seek out a hidden “not quite gin” bar.

“Genever is kind of the ancestor to gin,” said Bidinger. “To make gin, you make a neutral-base spirit like a vodka and infuse botanicals on top of it. Genever comes from the days when everything came off of a pot still so it was very flavor-forward and flavor-rich and everything was kind of a whiskey. Many traditional gin cocktails were originally made with Genever. [America] used to import [Genever] 4-to-1 over gin prior to prohibition. Even things like the gin and tonic, the martini, and the Tom Collins – known as the John Collins at the time — were originally made with Genever in mind.”

Echo tapped several top local bartenders to help develop the flavor profile of their Genever. The names of those who assisted in the spirit’s creation will be listed on the inside of every bottle.

Echo’s Genever will be released on Monday, November 2 at noon and will initially only be available at their Grandview area spirit shop, which is located in the former Four String Brewing taproom.

Originally targeting a March opening delayed by COVID, the distillery now hopes to have its bar open by Thanksgiving. Once open, customers will be able to try the spirit in several cocktails or on its own in a traditional genever tasting.

“Genever is typically served in a tulip shaped glass set on the bar and filled all the way to the brim cresting over the top so that the person can’t pick it up to taste it — you have to put your hands behind your back and bow to the bar and slurp off the top before you’re able to pick it up,” said Bidinger. “It’s a whole experience.”

Echo Spirits Distilling Co is located at 985 W Sixth Ave.

About the Author

Cheryl Harrison. Editor of Drink Up Columbus. Co-Founder of the Columbus Ale Trail.

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