I really had to make my first actual post on here about the most renowned god of wine and winemaking. It would be silly of me not to! And there are many things that are quite important to know about the Hellenic Olympian god Dionysus. Read on, and you might find that in fact, some of his tales are an experience of their own. And one is particularly topical, given recent events ;
His name literally means “twice-born”, because he survived in utero when his mortal mother Semele burst into flames, after she urged his father Zeus to show his true form to her. Zeus then carried the baby Dionysus in his thigh, thus meaning the god - although Dionysus was often considered then to be only a demi-god - was born a second time. Owing to this origin story, Dionysus is also considered to be the only Olympian god to have a mortal mother.
Dionysus was welcomed among the Olympian gods, once he had finished his upbringing on Mount Nysa, with Silenus and the resident nymphs. With this having taken some considerable time, Dionysus was the last of the Olympian gods to arrive, at their dwelling on Mount Olympus.
As well as being a god of wine, the domains of Dionysus also include Theatre, Festivity, feeling and dancing achieved through ecstasy, and quite naturally he was viewed as a god of Fertility - seeing as his work was seen to extend well beyond the grape vines - although the ancient Greeks did consider these alone to be of great importance. It’s critical to remember with all the gods of the Hellenic pantheon - most needed offerings to continue living as deities. Indeed, i’ll be dropping hints of this in later articles, but there has been at least one tale in which the Olympian gods were in a position where they, and their worshippers, suffered a famine that almost starved them. This was when the Olympian goddess of abundance, Demeter, was very upset over her daughter being stolen by Hades, and she made the lands barren.
Demeter and Dionysus were both worshipped in the ancient Greek settlement of Eleusis. And indeed, just like Demeter, it’s considered a very bad idea to upset, dishonour, or ignore the advice of Dionysus. But we’ll pick back up on that, in the next post that i’ll publish about him ;)
Although it’s not a wine that i’m reviewing in this post, I felt that this Whinberry Gin (40% abv), a craft product of the Batch Distillery, is definitely worthy of this blog’s first review. The term ‘whinberry’ alone invokes intrigue. It’s actually a name given to Lancashire’s local variety of British Bilberries. Or as we commonly know them, blueberries. But the product itself comes in a far more dark reddish colour. Presented in such a fine 700ml clear bottle - the same as with all of Batch Distillery’s concoctions - with a vertical concertina design around the labels (almost like a Greek column ;) it seems like such a friendly, unassuming spirit. But it hits the nose hard, with a pungent berry flourish, rich and almost vodka-like in its strength! This can overpower the tongue a little, when tasting neat. Spice still really hits the palate here, and you can really pick up how much it’s like a sloe gin, but surprisingly more tart. And not just the tartness you might find in a fresh blueberry. It’s much more piercing - the distilling doesn’t make it smooth, like you would find in a good sloe gin. So it’s best not to mistake the Whinberry Gin for a sloe gin, despite appearances. Offering a finish that’s equally fruitful, but rather “falls” off the tongue, I t’s very much it’s own character. Indeed, this is why its makers recommend serving with Prosecco or ginger ale. I intend to test that out soon 😉
For now, I’ve simply opted to test with a tonic water. But here, it does seem to compliment the way that a sloe gin would. Dark and light notes, sippable in its strength and quantity, and offering a good hint of cardamom with all the other spice. Definitely brings out great waves of fruitiness, in its finish!
Being less than half its original price for a bottle right now, I can’t help but stress again that Whinberry Gin makes a truly excellent choice for the gin and spirits connoisseur - especially anyone looking to try new gin cocktails. It’s money well spent!
His name literally means “twice-born”, because he survived in utero when his mortal mother Semele burst into flames, after she urged his father Zeus to show his true form to her. Zeus then carried the baby Dionysus in his thigh, thus meaning the god - although Dionysus was often considered then to be only a demi-god - was born a second time. Owing to this origin story, Dionysus is also considered to be the only Olympian god to have a mortal mother.
Dionysus was welcomed among the Olympian gods, once he had finished his upbringing on Mount Nysa, with Silenus and the resident nymphs. With this having taken some considerable time, Dionysus was the last of the Olympian gods to arrive, at their dwelling on Mount Olympus.
As well as being a god of wine, the domains of Dionysus also include Theatre, Festivity, feeling and dancing achieved through ecstasy, and quite naturally he was viewed as a god of Fertility - seeing as his work was seen to extend well beyond the grape vines - although the ancient Greeks did consider these alone to be of great importance. It’s critical to remember with all the gods of the Hellenic pantheon - most needed offerings to continue living as deities. Indeed, i’ll be dropping hints of this in later articles, but there has been at least one tale in which the Olympian gods were in a position where they, and their worshippers, suffered a famine that almost starved them. This was when the Olympian goddess of abundance, Demeter, was very upset over her daughter being stolen by Hades, and she made the lands barren.
Demeter and Dionysus were both worshipped in the ancient Greek settlement of Eleusis. And indeed, just like Demeter, it’s considered a very bad idea to upset, dishonour, or ignore the advice of Dionysus. But we’ll pick back up on that, in the next post that i’ll publish about him ;)
Although it’s not a wine that i’m reviewing in this post, I felt that this Whinberry Gin (40% abv), a craft product of the Batch Distillery, is definitely worthy of this blog’s first review. The term ‘whinberry’ alone invokes intrigue. It’s actually a name given to Lancashire’s local variety of British Bilberries. Or as we commonly know them, blueberries. But the product itself comes in a far more dark reddish colour. Presented in such a fine 700ml clear bottle - the same as with all of Batch Distillery’s concoctions - with a vertical concertina design around the labels (almost like a Greek column ;) it seems like such a friendly, unassuming spirit. But it hits the nose hard, with a pungent berry flourish, rich and almost vodka-like in its strength! This can overpower the tongue a little, when tasting neat. Spice still really hits the palate here, and you can really pick up how much it’s like a sloe gin, but surprisingly more tart. And not just the tartness you might find in a fresh blueberry. It’s much more piercing - the distilling doesn’t make it smooth, like you would find in a good sloe gin. So it’s best not to mistake the Whinberry Gin for a sloe gin, despite appearances. Offering a finish that’s equally fruitful, but rather “falls” off the tongue, I t’s very much it’s own character. Indeed, this is why its makers recommend serving with Prosecco or ginger ale. I intend to test that out soon 😉
For now, I’ve simply opted to test with a tonic water. But here, it does seem to compliment the way that a sloe gin would. Dark and light notes, sippable in its strength and quantity, and offering a good hint of cardamom with all the other spice. Definitely brings out great waves of fruitiness, in its finish!
Being less than half its original price for a bottle right now, I can’t help but stress again that Whinberry Gin makes a truly excellent choice for the gin and spirits connoisseur - especially anyone looking to try new gin cocktails. It’s money well spent!
We’ll come back to Whinberry Gin and Dionysus soon. I’ll leave a link for that post here, once it’s live -
But in my next article, we’ll be looking at the origins and mysteries of the goddess(es) from which Juniper berries got their name, and why she was invoked in ancient Etruria as Uni-Astre.
Looking forward to cocktails with gin! I like sweet concoctions myself! Cocktails are now my favourite alcoholic beverage!
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