"Open a bottle of gin and take in its aroma. Imagine the same scent on a sunny seaside. Now picture cascades of pointed green leaves on twisted trunks descending from the hills, scattered with blue berries. Finally, wrap it all in the scent of lamb slowly roasting in the oven, and you’ll understand the beauty of juniper," reads a passage about juniper berries in one of the books on my shelf.

It’s hard to say why these dusty-blue berries are often overlooked in modern gastronomy. Perhaps it’s because of their sharp taste and the high toxicity of some varieties. Or maybe it’s due to the time they take to ripen—about a year. Our native Ukrainian junipers produce terracotta-colored berries with a light, slightly herbal, and mildly spicy flavor, reminiscent of cloves, with a faint hint of bay leaf.

The further west you go in Europe, the darker the juniper berries become. Blue and violet berries sometimes have a flavor that’s too intense. Yet this can also be an advantage. Juniper withstands the intense heat of a grill without becoming bitter, tolerates long cooking times, and holds its own in dishes featuring aromatic game. In terms of flavor intensity, it’s comparable to garlic and rosemary.

Juniper berries can be added to dishes with feathered or large game, duck, pâtés, or even crushed to enhance gin-based cocktails.