As consumer interest in botanicals in spirits has grown, so has their curiosity about foraging for those botanicals.
Foraged spirits thus join a confluence of trends, as more enthusiasts seek local spirits tied to their place; as New World gins, amari, and other regional, botanical-driven spirits and liqueurs grow in popularity; and as consumers place growing emphasis on sustainable sourcing.
Foraging also opens a wider world of possibilities for the craft distiller. You can learn, gather, experiment, and collaborate—all within reasonable range of your distillery—while exploring new flavor and aroma possibilities and while turning those spirits into expressions of their time and place.
Even for the urban distiller, foraging can be a valuable tool in the repertoire. All you need to get started is some know-how and an understanding of the commitment that foraging requires.