A strangely unknown part of gin making, the base spirit can often be made from a variety of sources.
Although wheat is more often than not the common denominator, other grains such as barley and rye are also used. But it doesn’t stop there, grape, apple, sugarcane, and whey based spirits are all widely used.
Many distillers will intentionally use different base spirit to provide a specific aroma and flavour profile outside of the botanical influence. A great example of this is one of New Zealand’s latest gins, Strange Nature. Made from a grape based spirit that caries a strong wine like aroma. Another would be G’Vine, a famous French based Grape Gin, not to mention Le Blanc Gin famously made by the Christian Drouin calvados house.
Even though botanicals will make up a lot of the flavour in gin from there essential oils presence, it is safe to never rule out the base spirit may be influencing.
Make a curious selection next time you're buying and look for something a bit different!