We didn't invent gin, we made it greater in India. Last year at junipalooza I was completely blown away with Hapusa gin from India. What I loved was the botanicals that were used are ones I've grown up loving in my Indian food. They went on to tell me Hapusa gins is one of the first Indian gins.
Surely with all the botanicals it would only be natural to have more gins? Later that year I came across stranger and sons which I adore too. After doing se research I came across Gr
Let's rewind to mid December. We had just returned from a trip to Vienna, a perfect long weekend away. We started discussing where our next trip away should be as we had time off booked for Ivan's birthday at the end of January. We both decided that Edinburgh would be perfect. We both love the city, it's full of culture and history, not to mention the countless amount of bars. I suggested we make a few visits to local distilleries and Ivan said he would take care of it. He ca
That Boutique-y Gin Company I've worked within the beauty industry for 11 years now. All the brands I've worked for have carried a perfume range as well as a makeup collection. When we attend annual training every brand would always talk about how smells can transport you back to a memory linked to that scent. Whenever I had a bridal client I would tell them to buy an extra special fragrance for their special day as that scent will forever remind them of their wedding day. No
In a time when new gin seems to be popping up every single day, something has to make the gin different. You need to be able to see the passion and excitement by the founders of the brand. The branding has to be thought out and well executed. It needs to leave a lasting impression, especially when your at a spirits show trying a silly amount of gin. While attending The Boutique Bar show 2018, I stumbled across a gin that somehow caught my eye. Could have been a few things tha
The original indigo gin Colour changing gin... It's becoming a thing now. Going from one colour to the next. Shades of blue to pink, orange to pink, dark pink to pink, you get the gist right? I'm not going to name and shame here but the taste and quality of these gins to vary. Most are style over substance for sure. I have a bunch in my gin collection but its a type of gin I pull out for my friends if they are new to gin as its fun. These gins change colour when tonic water o
I know I’ve spoken about tea in previous posts but I’m back here talking about it again. When I were younger my family and I would go to Punjab, India to visit my grandparents and family every few years. I have lots of fond memories, running through the fields my family owned, being terrified of the water buffaloes on our farm and my mother telling me to drink tea. My mother always told us to drink it, “someone has gone to the effort to make it for you so drink up.” Indian te
Hayman's of London So let’s go back to when Hayman's gin first launched their campaign to call time on fake gin, I was interested to hear more about the campaign and I read their manifesto. A month later I was at the #ginoff hosted by graphic bar and Hayman's gin was participating. Out of all the cocktails that night, this was my favorite, the cute school lunch bag sold it for me and it was the first time I got to try one of their gins. After this it seemed like everywhere I
English summers.... Thinking about the English summer a few things pop to my mind... Wimbledon, strawberries, 6 different types of ice-cream in the freezer at any given time and endless visits to garden center. My mother takes great pride with her fruit and veg patch in the garden, she wakes up every morning and talks to her flowers/crops and gives them more attention then she pays to me. My mother takes great pride with her fruit and veg patch in the garden she spends most o
There is something very romantic about this just gin. If I was watching the sun set with the love of my life, this would be the gin I would want to be drinking during it. What makes this gin romantic I hear you cry... well, after the initial notes of juniper you can taste the rose buds and raspberry leaf. Lets not forget the bottle, rose gold foil lettering makes this bottle stand out from the crowd. The guys at Kalevala are keeping the recipe of their gins a secret. However
Everyone likes to be the first to try something new and I’m no different, try it before everyone else... yes please, where do I sign up? This was my first launch party invite and I couldn’t wait to see what Franklin & Sons had in store for us especially as I had tried the existing range at the start of the month at Junipalooza and loved them. I had tried the existing range at the start of the month at Junipalooza and loved them. The epicurean collection The epicurean collecti
What happened when three friends got together and decided to create a gin could be classed as the best of the best? That could be drank straight or with a tonic? They were on a mission to do just that. They created Porter Gin, a juniper heavy gin with light citrus notes that is just to die for. Porters gin is all the way from Aberdeen, Scotland... The land of awesome gins it seems. The trio (Josh, Ben and Alex) who came up with this beautiful gin using traditional Copper pot-
Lets go back to November 2017, when I saw through a Instagram post that tickets for Junipalooza were going on sale. No idea what I would be doing on the 9th of June I purchased a pair of tickets praying that I would be able to convince a friend to join me. Fast forward 7 months and I felt like a 7 year old on Christmas eve. Super excited to be attending, like eager beavers we got there super early, we didn't want to take any chances on securing tickets for the gin experiences
Through my Instagram and blog I’ve had many people from all over the world contact me about gin. From “hey have you tried this gin?” “You going to ginfestival?” “A fellow gin lover... how are you” When you share a passion for the same thing with someone it’s easy to make conversation. That’s exactly what happened a few weeks ago. Started making small talk with some who I thought was just someone who loved gin. Turned out he was a distiller from Newton House Gin. He told me a
It was last August when I visited Mr foggs Gin Parlour and I was recommended on trying Whitley Neill’s Quince gin with the house tonic. At the time I didn’t know what quince was. (Yellow pear like fruit) It was a nice fruity sweet gin and came home thinking I need to get myself a bottle. I had the same thought with every gin I tried that day however Whitley Neills Quince Gin was the only one I ended up purchasing. It was my brothers 30th birthday that weekend so I was happy t
When I first started drinking gin my cousin said I should try Brockmans gin, she told me all her friends would be impressed when she pulled out the bottle at her place. So naturally when I was in a bar in Calgary I asked for a Brockmans and tonic. I really enjoyed it, before trying this gin I hadn't really tried anything fruity. I brought a bottle when I saw we sold it at the place I worked. Since then its been a staple in my collection. Last summer they had a 'Press for gin'
Everyone loves a miniature bottle of gin. On Instagram I see people taking photos of ones they have picked up daily. Photos of miniatures taken on flights, weekend trips away and pictures of ever growing collections. Minis are a big deal in the gin world.
I tend to buy miniature bottles of gins so I can try before committing to spending money on buying a full size bottle.
I was pleasantly surprised to stumble across the Instagram page for Drinks In A Tube.
A great way to try
This cute speakeasy is a little tricky to find. When they say to look out for the optician sign they weren't kidding. I think I walked past three times the first time I visited. On my first visit we reluctantly opened the door which had a brass pigs head as a door handle and we walked up questioning if we were in the right place. We were greeted by friendly hosts at the top of the staircase. Once seated we were given menus full of beautiful illustrations bringing back floods