CINNAMON

Cinnamon has been one of the world's most economically important spices for over 4,000 years. The earliest documented use traces to ancient Egypt, where cinnamon was an essential embalming spice and a luxury import worth more than gold by weight; the Egyptians had no idea where it actually came from, and Arab traders who dominated the supply chain were happy to obscure the route via increasingly fanciful stories about cinnamon being harvested from giant nests of mythical birds. The real source — Sri Lanka — was a closely guarded secret until Portuguese, Dutch and finally British colonial powers took the island through the 16th–19th centuries, each fighting over the cinnamon monopoly. True Ceylon cinnamon now accounts for only 5–10% of global "cinnamon" production; most of what is sold simply as "cinnamon" in supermarkets is cassia. [source] In gin, cinnamon is foundational to almost every warming-spice profile — used across mulled gins, Christmas-style gins, and contemporary spice-route expressions worldwide.

Cinnamon is a powerful, distinctive warming botanical. A full sachet pushes a gin firmly into spiced-winter territory and pairs naturally with clove, nutmeg and orange peel for a Christmas-style blend; a half-sachet adds a warm sweet-aromatic background that integrates with juniper for contemporary warmth without dominating. Use only Ceylon cinnamon (Cinnamomum verum) for genuine sweet-floral character — cassia tastes harsher and sharper, which can work but is a different style. Avoid pairing cinnamon with very subtle florals — the warmth buries them.

The dominant compound is cinnamaldehyde — typically 50–63% of Ceylon cinnamon's essential oil (notably lower than cassia at 69%), responsible for the sweet-warm spice character. [source] Eugenol layers a clove-like depth on the finish (around 7–10% of the oil in Ceylon cinnamon, higher than in cassia), which is part of why Ceylon tastes rounder and more complex. Linalool contributes a soft floral lift. Caryophyllene adds woody depth. Cinnamaldehyde is heat-stable, fat- and alcohol-soluble, and survives both vapour infusion and traditional maceration cleanly. The sweet-floral lift of Ceylon cinnamon (vs the sharper character of cassia) makes it the preferable choice for gin where balance and roundness matter more than dominant heat.