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Juniper is no longer just juniper. Written by Aaron Knoll
ruth be told, it never was. Juniper is a broad taxonomic term that refers to the genus Juniperus. That genus contains at least 76 species of juniper (and a further 32 varieties beyond that)1. Juniper trees grow throughout the Northern Hemisphere and thrive in a variety of niches. But they all have in common two things: Needle-like leaves and cones. The one species that most gin distillers know best is Juniperus communis. It grows native all across the Northern Hemisphere in temperate climates. The species is even called out specifically in the European Union regulations for spirits labeling: 20. (a) Gin is a juniper-flavoured spirit drink produced by flavouring ethyl alcohol of agricultural origin with juniper berries ( Juniperus communis L.)2 However, even within this one species, there’s more variation than meets the eye. There may be as many as two subspecies and up to eight varieties. So what does all of this mean? Species, subspecies, and varieties are differentiated based on morphology. The needles are different. The plant has a different shape. The cones are different sizes. These differences allow the plants to thrive in different niches, and therefore have different chemical makeups. The plants and their cones may smell, taste, and distill differently owing to the variety of terpenes present. While distillers in European markets (or those looking to distribute their products in such markets) are limited by the hyper-specific regulations governing juniper type, others aren’t as tightly bound. For example, in the United States, the requirement is merely defined as “Juniper berries.”3 1 Adams (2014) 2 Regulation (EU) 2019/787 (2019) 3 Alcohol and Tobacco Tax and Trade Bureau. 2007
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