For the record, it's pronounced "ka-roon." But you'll glean that from the label, which helpfully translates the Gaelic into a phonetic form we can all pronounce after a stiff martini or two. Yes, Gaelic, for this is a Scottish gin, a relatively new entrant in the superpremium category alongside its well-established kilted competitor, the excellent but very different Hendrick's. Caorunn is made at Balmenach Distillery in the Speyside region of the Highlands using the small-batch approach and a fistful of Celtic botanicals, including the local rowan berry (a.k.a. caorunn).
Bottled at 41.8-per-cent alcohol, it follows the London-dry style and comes across with a spicy kick but otherwise delicate notes that suggest apple, lemon and flowers. If you're no fan of the in-your-face shaving-cream essence of strong juniper, this may be a gin for you. I think it's better deployed in a dry martini than in a gin and tonic, where its subtlety loses focus amid all that quinine and lime-wedge activity.