FOR MANY OUTSIDE of Belgium and The Netherlands, genever (or jenever – either is correct) is an enigma. Yes, it’s the forerunner to gin but it’s unpleasant with tonic. It takes its name from juniper but it doesn’t really work in gin cocktails. Those who make it are not blessed with the budgets of the multinationals and the message of genever feels a little lost. But there is plenty to talk about and those who have begun to worship at the altar of genever are fanatics. 

Perhaps drinks network Taste & Flavour’s founder Mark Ridgewell hits the nail on the head when he describes it as “bridging the gap between light and dark spirits”. 

In fact, the animated Patrick van Zuidam, master distiller of The Netherlands’ Zuidam Distillery, is so adamant that it doesn’t work with tonic that he jokingly (we hope) challenges people to avoid it on pain of death. 

He says: “Imposing a death penalty on everybody who tries to make a Gin & Tonic or a Martini with genever would be helpful. Genever does NOT mix well with tonic and it is NOT a gin. Don’t use it as a gin or you’ll be disappointed. Don’t mix it with tonic – you can mix young genever with coke or fruit juice or virtually any soft drink but tonic.

“Furthermore, aged genevers shine when drunk neat like a whisky or you can use them to make extraordinary Manhattans or Old-Fashioneds.”

So is gin’s comparison to genever unfair? Well not really. It’s a bit like telling a child it looks like one of their parents – they might not like it but there’s no getting away from it. There’s also no getting away from the differences between the two. 

Ben Belmans from Ben’s Bar in Antwerp, Belgium, is one of the world’s leading experts on genever – definitely a fanatic. He regularly speaks on the subject and he has written a comprehensive history of the category. He says the difference came with the invention of the column still in the 19th century. 

“Before the invention of the column still, genever and gin were basically pretty much the same – the sweetness of Old Tom was probably due to the moutwijn. Genever has it, gin has not.” Moutwijn translates as malt wine and it’s the spirit obtained from the distillation of malted barley and other cereals in a pot still. “It is the heart of most genevers and is the fundamental difference with gin, although it is not required by law – some genevers have very little moutwijn,” adds Belmans. 

New products

The excitement around genever does not rest solely in its production and history. At Amsterdam-based Bols, genever is very much on the agenda in the meeting room – and in the distillery. New strategies are being discussed and new products have been developed. 

For Bols chief executive Huub van Doorne, the 21st century has played a significant part in genever’s history. 

2008 saw the launch of Bols Genever, initially in San Francisco, Amsterdam and London. “Distribution is rolling out to other cities in Australia, Germany, Russia and Japan but its biggest markets remain the US followed by the UK where it is predominantly available in the top end on trade,” says Van Doorne.

The latest interest in genever cocktails is almost a second surge for the category, according to Bols. Van Doorne says the history of genever in cocktails “dates back to the late 19th century when it was integral to the classic cocktail movement”. 

He adds: “The cocktail renaissance, in particular the trend for classic cocktails, has coincided with the launch of Bols Genever so there has been a natural interest from bartenders to find out more about it and incorporate it into drinks menus. Our volumes have doubled every year [since 2008], albeit from a small base, but each year there are more bars in an increasing number of markets using Bols Genever.”

Like many journeys into drinking, imbibers start with the most approachable example of a spirit and navigate their way into the category. It’s rare to meet a whisky drinker who cut their whisky teeth on a heavily peated Islay, for example. Turns out genever isn’t any different and, as more people become interested in the category, there is a need for new – or old – product development. 

Van Zuidam says the popularity of genever has meant the distillery is “struggling to keep up with production”.

“Rye Genever is our shooting star with a growth of 60% to 70% per year for the past five years. Young Grain Genever is still our biggest seller but is rapidly being overtaken by the aged genevers,” he adds.

In the Bols camp, age is also on the agenda. Van Doorne says: “A year ago we developed an 18 month barrel aged Bols Genever to create intrigue around genever and tap into the growing interest in the category. It is designed to appeal to more discerning brown spirits drinkers and is performing really well and currently available in the US and Japan only.”

At Belgium-based Filliers Distillery vintage genevers bolster the special releases category, along with single-cask genevers. 

And, like so many other spirits categories, distillers are adding fruits to their labours. Jürgen Lanckriet, marketing manager at Filliers says the latest innovations include taste variations within the fruit-genever category. He counts Cavaillon and Elderflower among the distiller’s latest creations, launched last month and available in Belgium, Luxembourg and The Netherlands. 

Lanckriet also claims Filliers is  the market leader within the cream genever category, with chocolate, banana and coconut in the portfolio. 

There’s just one problem: not enough people know about genever.  Alex Kratena, head bartender at World’s Best Bar 2012 The Artesian at the Langham hotel in London, believes producers should do more to market the category. Kratena is another genever fanatic and he says he has around 50 genevers at any one time.

“It’s not really a collection because I keep drinking them,” he adds. “I think the producers of genever should push more – just look where single malts were 20 years ago and where they are now.” 

Educating consumers

As a producer, Van Zuidam agrees with Kratena. He says: “People are not yet familiar with the products and we the producers must spend lots of time educating the market about what is it and how do you drink it.” But he says one of the greatest challenges around the category is the number of poor-quality products seeping into the marketplace. 

“There are super genevers being made by a handful of good artisanal distillers. Unfortunately there are also lots of cheap, industrially-made genevers being marketed. “These could give genevers a bad reputation and explaining the difference to new consumers will be a challenge,” says Van Zuidam. 

For this reason, he is sceptical as to whether the product will reach the dizzy heights of its juniper relation. “I don’t think it will ever be as big as gin,” he says. “Not because its not a great product but because it’s still relatively unknown.”

Filliers’ Lanckriet says producers “don’t have the marketing budgets of the multinationals” but it’s not going to stop him from sowing the genever seed. “It’s important we keep spreading the word. The gin revival gives us a nice opportunity to tell our story and our historical connection with gin” he says. “We don’t have the budgets of the multinationals, so we have to be realistic and focus on the barmen/trade to tell our story. “But to be honest, it will be extremely difficult … but never say never.”

Genever’s number one fan Belmans is a little more optimistic and he, for one, hopes history repeats itself. “Gin is recovering and regaining its place on the global map, so why can’t genever?” he asks.

“It’s complex and it’s mixable, and no other spirit has more history (sorry Ian Burrell) than genever. The key is in the hands of the distillers. The average quality wasn’t that good for the past decades, and I’m glad we are seeing a change in strategy. 

“Since 2008, you see both big and small distilleries creating a new vintage style of genever, going back to the roots of it, good quality moutwijn redistilled in pot still with first-class botanicals, some aged in oak barrels.”

Belmans can’t resist adding the background to the story: “This is what I call 17 Provinces Genever, named after the period when Belgium and The Netherlands were one country, in the 16th century, and were called the 17 Provinces.”

Aside from an extensive knowledge of the category’s history, Belmans also sees an ‘in’ for its future. “I see many so-called typical whisky drinkers having G&T’s or other cocktails/spirits, so why could genever not be one of them in the near future?”

Genever producers: it’s time to make history.