Review: Waterloo Gin, Complete Lineup (2025)
Here’s a funny origin story. Waterloo Gin got started in 2009 at Texas’s Treaty Oak distillery, and it was sold by them until September 2024 when it was spun off from Treaty Oak and sold to John Paul DeJoria’s spirits company. DeJoria is a big deal in spirits, having previously purchased the Patron brand and making into the bazillion dollar machine it is today. (Patron was sold to Bacardi in 2018.)
DeJoria’s still dabbling in spirits, and the Waterloo acquisition is a curious one. The gin is still being made at Treaty Oak — and it can even be tasted there — using the same botanicals and production methods as before, only with DeJoria’s crew on hand to oversee things now. Made from corn-based spirit and infused with Texas-grown botanicals, Waterloo is now available in three expressions, all of which we review below.
Waterloo No. 9 Gin Review
Nine for the botanicals in the mix — “a love letter to Texas” — including juniper, lavender, grapefruit, pecan, lemon zest, coriander, anise, ginger, and licorice root. Only two of those I would particularly associate with Texas, though all the botanicals are sourced locally. Lavender is strong on the nose, though it’s short of becoming soapy. Time in glass sees the florals blowing off and those more brooding coriander and anise notes taking center stage. Juniper is restrained, more visible after a half hour of air time, giving the gin a slightly peppery note as the finish builds. The conclusion is a return to florals, rose-scented, gently sweet with brown sugar notes, and a final dash of licorice. Flowery throughout with its juniper restrained, rest assured that London dry fans will not like this gin. 94 proof. B+ / $35
Waterloo Barrel-Aged Gin Review
This expression uses the same botanicals, then it spends 2 to 3 years in first-use medium char American oak barrels. It used to be called “Antique Barrel-Aged Gin” under the Treaty Oak banner, but now it’s lost the antique from the name. I didn’t love this gin under the Treaty Oak label and I’m still not really loving this in 2025 — though it seems to have more age on it today. Quite floral with lots of lavender visible, the oak aging only seems to compound the perfumed character, adding in a layer of vanilla and ample visible anise. The palate’s more balanced, and while those florals still dominate completely, they’re tempered by a little wood tannin, mint, and a nutty touch from the pecans. Vanilla is strong but better integrated here, giving the whole affair the feeling of something that lands somewhere between whiskey and gin. (To be sure, folks make Old Fashioneds out of this.) Notes of nougat imbue a finish that otherwise sees more lingering lavender and hints of coriander, but ultimately it pulls you back into the whiskey vs. gin debate. In the end I just wanted the spirit to pick a side. 94 proof. B- / $45
Waterloo Prickly Pear & Rose Gin Review
This new expression adds prickly pear, hibiscus, and rose to the No. 9 ginbill. It’s pink. The extra florals make an already perfumed gin even more so, punctuating the nose with deep aromas of fresh rose petals, paired with a much more visible grapefruit character. A touch of spice-dusted citrus rounds out the aromatics. The palate is naturally quite floral but surprisingly not overblown, as ample citrus perks things up and counterbalances those aromas driven by the garden. Silky and creamy with heavy notes of vanilla and coriander, the gin is decidedly New World in its styling, turning to strawberry and cinnamon as it develops further in the glass. It’s quite cosmo-like in construction — an effusive and pretty gin that works delightfully well in long drinks and with fruit-heavy mixers. I didn’t think I’d like this gin at all, but, well, here we are. 94 proof. A- / $40
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