Scapegrace has built a reputation for pushing boundaries while maintaining an unwavering commitment to craft, and their Gold expression — bottled at a commanding 57% ABV — is a striking example of what happens when ambition meets technical skill. This is a Navy Strength gin in the truest sense: bold, unapologetic, and built to carry weight in any glass you put it in.
Style & Character
At 57% ABV, Scapegrace Gold sits firmly in Navy Strength territory, a category that demands structural integrity from its botanical bill. The higher proof is not merely a novelty here — it serves as a canvas, allowing the botanical character to project with greater intensity and definition than a standard-strength counterpart ever could. This is a gin that announces itself the moment you uncap the bottle.
Category & Context
Navy Strength gins live or die by their balance. Push the alcohol too far forward and you lose the botanicals; lean too heavily on flavour and the spirit feels muddled at proof. Scapegrace Gold walks that line with considerable confidence. It carries the hallmarks of a well-constructed high-strength gin — one that retains composure where lesser expressions might unravel. At £62.50, it sits at a premium, though for a Navy Strength of this calibre, the price feels proportionate to what is in the bottle.
Best Served
A gin of this strength deserves a Martini. I would take it at a 3:1 ratio with a quality dry vermouth, stirred long over ice and strained clean. The higher ABV ensures the botanical character holds its ground against dilution — precisely as Navy Strength should. Alternatively, a robust G&T with Fever-Tree Indian Tonic and a restrained citrus garnish will let the spirit do the talking.
Rating: 8.2/10 — A self-assured Navy Strength gin that commands respect. It earns its place among the more compelling expressions in the category.
