Our Trees

Why the Trees Matter

At WildGins, the tree is not just a source. It’s the starting point.

We collect Redberry and Alligator Juniper berries from individual female trees growing on private land in West Texas. These trees are not farmed or cultivated; they grow wild, shaped by elevation, weather, and time. The landowners who steward them have become close partners and friends, and, fittingly, devoted fans of WildJune and WildBark.

Juniper berries develop slowly. They follow a two-year reproductive cycle and can remain on the branch for up to 18 months before they’re ready to harvest. Some trees fruit in odd years, others in even years, and during drought conditions certain trees pause reproduction altogether. Each tree responds differently to its environment, producing berries with subtle variations in aroma, intensity, and character.

That individuality is the point.

The yield from a single mature tree is substantial. We gather enough berries from one tree to distill entire batches of gin using berries sourced exclusively from that individual tree. One year, a single Alligator Juniper—affectionately known as Fertile Myrtle—produced nearly 40 pounds of berries, with more than half still remaining on her branches after harvest.

Because of this approach, each batch of WildJune or WildBark reflects the character of a single source. To our knowledge, WildGins is the only spirits producer in the world crafting a botanical spirit this way, one tree, one batch.

Over time, we’ve come to know these trees well enough to give them names. You’ll find the name of the tree used for each batch printed on the label of every WildJune and WildBark bottle. It’s our way of honoring the source, and inviting you to connect more deeply with what’s in your glass.

Finally, respect for the trees extends beyond the bottle. Since 2021, we’ve reinvested in the land that makes WildGins possible through our Give a Wild Buck program. For every bottle purchased during the giving season (November through February), we donate $1 to The Nature Conservancy’s West Texas chapter, supporting the preservation of the landscapes that sustain these remarkable trees.

At WildGins, the tree defines the gin.

And every bottle tells the story of where it came from.