Nestled in the French Riviera, Comte de Grasse is aiming to tap into the ultra-premium end of the gin market. SB travelled south to discover more about its perfume-inspired offering.

Created by master scientist and innovator Marie-Anne Contamin, the gin is created using ultrasonic maceration, vacuum distillation and CO₂ supercritical extraction.

Earlier this month, The Spirits Business was fortunate enough to fly south to Grasse, France, home of the distillery, to learn more about this new expression.

From gin tastings and lab sessions to virtual reality experiences and rooftop cocktails, a jam-packed itinerary left no stone unturned about the 44^oN gin.

After landing in Nice, France, a short taxi ride took our group to Restaurant Lougolin for a welcome lunch to set us up for the day. The Italian influence on the Côte d’Azur region was soon evident, as the menu offered a choice of prawn or asparagus risottos, and creamy carbonara, as well as tuna tartare and fresh fish.

Appetites satisfied, our next stop of the day was the Comte de Grasse distillery. Upon arrival, master scientist and innovator Marie-Anne Contamin greeted us and showed us around the distillery as it currently stands (the official distillery is due to be built and completed by next year). During the tour, Contamin explained in detail the production process of 44^oN gin.

To begin with, the botanicals are weighed and ground into a powder, before being added to a 50/50 composition of ethanol and raw water. Following a 45-minute maceration, the mixture is transferred into the rotary evaporator, which operates between 50-55ºC.

The spirit comes off the still at about 75% abv, and this is when natural plant extracts are added for extra flavour. De-mineralised water is then used to reduce the alcohol strength to 44% abv.

The gin is stored in a bottling tank, before being filled into the brand’s distinctive blue and yellow glass bottles. At present, the distillery has the capacity to fill between 750 and 800 bottles in one afternoon. From start to finish, the production process takes approximately four-and-a-half hours. Distillation alone is around a two-and-a-half hour process.

Grasse is known for its perfume heritage and this was the inspiration behind the bottle’s distinctive look. The yellow top represents the sun, while the embossed lines falling down the bottle are a nod to the sun’s rays. The blue is emblematic of the sea, and the overall appearance is supposed to be representative of the Côte d’Azur. The gin is currently bottled in a 500ml format, and is available in a gift box for special occasions. The brand first launched 1,500 bottles before Christmas, priced at €75 (US$85) each.

After touring the facilities, the group headed back to school for a ‘lab session’ that allowed us to nose each botanical used in 44^oN gin in its raw form, before also sampling them after maceration and distillation. The selection of natural botanical essences were also available to enlighten our senses. Botanicals used in the gin include cade, bitter orange, verbena, everlasting, rose, alexanders, samphire, honey, juniper, angelica, coriander, lemon, mimosa and orris.

The group was given a look into the future of Comte de Grasse through a virtual reality experience. The distillery has been granted planning permission to scale up its operations and transform one of the onsite buildings into a full-fledged distillery, which is expected to be completed next year. The distillery hopes to also build a storage room, with several bottling tanks, as well as create a bigger bottling facility, which will help increase its annual production capacity.

On the second day of the visit, we headed to the Jardins du Musée International de la Parfumerie (MIP Gardens) in Grasse for a guided tour with Gabriel Bouillon, head of regional agriculture bureau. With more than 850 flowers – many of which are used as botanicals by local perfumers and also Comte de Grasse – the garden was full of flavour, intriguing aromas and beautiful buds.

After taking in the sights, smells and tastes of the garden, we headed to Cannes to rub shoulders with the great and good of the film world (or we tried to, at least). After enjoying lunch on the beach front at La Môme Plage, we headed up to the roof of Hotel Barrière le Majestic Cannes for an exclusive 44^oN gin cocktail session with bar manager Emanuele Balestra. Balestra has embraced the world of botanicals, and grows many of his own ingredients around, in and on top of the hotel. Among his many triumphs is a colony of bees that lives on the hotel roof.