Monks - Mary Jane

The first South African gin to be infused with Hemp.

Hemp as in Kush? Marijuana? Mary Jane? Yes..and no. Hemp is is a term used to classify varieties of Cannabis that contain 0.3% or less THC content (by dry weight). While Marijuana is varieties of Cannabis that contain more than 0.3% THC (by dry weight) and can induce psychotropic or euphoric effects on the user. How I wish I could tell you this gin gets you high, LMAO. It doesn't but it's a damn good gin!

I had so much fun drinking this bottle, I finished it! (so much for collecting bottles 😂) and I have ordered another one from Takealot, this time with the other siblings from the Monks range. The flavour of this gin is crisp, fresh, botanical yet so smooth on the lips. I was very excited at how smooth it was because I expected it be hard and strong, but it went and exceeded my expectations.

The Monks Mary Jane is a craft gin distilled by the monks Nic and Di Davis, two friends, in 2017; decided to bring their vast and varied experience to the realm of independent gin distilling. Their "first born"gin, Mysterium, is infused with Africa’s ‘miracle herb’ buchu and Sceletium, a natural mood enhancer sometimes referred to as the ‘pathway to the gods’. The "middle child", Medella, brings you a taste of blueberries, farmed on location and well known as a vitamin-rich superfood high in antioxidants. and our fav "last born" Mary Jane is our Hemp infused gin - a plant that is widely reffered to as the miracle plant. This gin has been awarded titles in the MichaelAngelo Awards, World Gin Awards and SA Craft Gin Awards, titles well deserved.

As I said, drinking this bottle was fun fun fun! I made beautiful cocktails, I made alcoholic jelly, I drank it straight, thats why its finished, Lol. Monks suggests the perfect pour to be a double tot of MONKS Mary Jane (50ml), fill glass with ice and top up with Fitch & Leeds Pink Tonic. Garnish with a slice of fresh or dehydrated grapefruit and a full star of anise. I had friends over this past weekend and while shopping for essentials to feed my guests, I got the bright idea to have jello shots! Such a fun thing to make, so easy and its gets the party going. You will need one box of jelly, one cup of hot water, half a cup of cold water and half a cup of gin. Mix these bad boys altogether and leave it to chill for while, then Enjoy! (Caution, it hits!!! 😂) So if you don't want get crunk on jelly, you can pour a little bit of gin.

This bottle comes in the most beautiful packaging and I think for the quality of this gin, the price is really value for money. I got this bottle from Takealot for about R380. What I have seen though that it depends where you buy it. YuppieChef is going to cost you anything from R400. An observation I made with this brand is that I could not see it anywhere in our local liquor stores such as Checkers and Pick n Pay. I think their trying to keep it as exclusive as possible as they have about 5 distributors in SA.

When I wrote this article, I really had no words, I really enjoyed this gin and I want you guys to buy it. It really mixes well with anything you dash it with. High five to the monks (and no they are not really monks...I think) but its really worth the money and I have zero bad things to say about it. I am eager to try out the two bottles and it's gems like this that make me want to collect more local brands.

I will be back soon with more additions to the collection. Cheers!

This article was written with the help of Monksgin.co.za.

Remember we drink safely and responsibly.