Norfolk Gin Producers
Published date: September 2018
Once known as ‘mother’s ruin’ gin has seen a massive surge in popularity in recent years, with gin parties, gin trains, gin advent calendars, gin afternoon teas, and gin experience days; there is even a gin hotel!
According to the Wine and Spirit Trade Association, sales of gin in the UK rose to £1.5 billion or roughly 55 million bottles in the 12 months to the end of March 2018.
The UK has a passion for all things gin and this is creating a whole new industry. There is high demand for interesting gins, made by artisan and small-scale craft producers and Norfolk has some great examples. The following Norfolk gins can be found in many local pubs and restaurants, as well as further afield. When you are next dining out or visiting a Norfolk pub, you may want to substitute your regular tipple with one of these fine Norfolk gins. They can also all be purchased online by the bottle; visit their individual websites for further details.
Norfolk Gin
The idea was born in 2014, and Norfolk Gin was launched in the summer of 2015. In its beautiful and distinctive ceramic bottle, you can enjoy your Norfolk Gin long after the last drop has been drunk; the bottle makes a great vase or candle holder.
Handcrafted in Norwich, the gin is made to a special and undisclosed recipe that combines a selection of botanicals to give it its unique flavour and unusual delicate green hue. There are aromas of fresh juniper, some spice, citrus notes alongside some sweetness, with floral and herbal scents.
Norfolk Gin can be purchased online from a variety of different retailers. It is also stocked in a number of local stores and farm shops.
Visit their website for further details
Boadicea® Gin
Boadicea® Gin, made with Norfolk grown barley and distilled in Norfolk, is vapour-infused in a copper pot still to gently extract the flavours without overcooking the botanicals. Produced in three expressions, Rosa, Winter and Classic, they are smooth and subtle and perfect sipped neat over ice. Longer drinks and cocktail recipes can be found on the Boadicea® Gin website.
Rosa, their newest addition, is a pink gin that has subtle peach and cherry notes. Winter, in the red bottle, oozes cranberry and winter spices and their Classic, in the blue bottle, is zesty with nettle and thyme. Presented in matte coloured bottles with hand-polished, embossed pewter labels, these tall and elegant bottles stand out in the saturated gin market. Fortunately, the products inside the bottles are just as stylish as their vessels.
All three expressions are gluten free and can be purchased directly from the Boadicea® Gin website and from a variety of stockists around Norfolk, including Jarrold Department Store and Bakers and Larners of Holt.
Visit their website for further details:
Archangel Gin
Distilled and bottled in Fakenham, Norfolk, Archangel Gin is made on a family owned working farm. They believe in quality rather than quantity and have a small-scale production that uses local produce and local labour. In their words “Archangel is a rich, complex gin bursting with exciting flavours. On the nose, the juniper, some of which is locally grown, floods through; the verbena and orange peel add a light, zesty fragrance to the top notes with rooty botanicals including sea-buckthorn breaking through at the finish.”
Currently available is a limited edition Archangel Rhubarb Gin. They steep the finest Norfolk rhubarb in the Archangel gin for a minimum of four weeks. A little of their own vodka is then added to ensure a perfectly balanced gin is created, with a delicate rhubarb flavour. The gin has a slightly opaque finish with a soft pink hue from the rhubarb, no colouring is used.
It can be enjoyed as a liqueur or as a longer drink with tonic and can be purchased online, directly from their website.
Visit the Archangel Gin website for further details
www.archangel-distilleries.co.uk
Black Shuck Ltd
The story of Black Shuck Gin began in the summer of 2011 and it is a family run business, based in Fakenham.
Their award-winning Norwich Dry Gin is just one of a number of gins and liqueurs that the company produces, all of which are inspired by the local landscape. Their premium Black Shuck Gin combines traditional botanicals such as juniper, orange peel and coriander with Norfolk lavender and sea buckthorn to create its distinctive flavour.
Other varieties include: Black Shuck Sloe Gin, Black Shuck Raspberry Liqueur, Black Shuck Damson Liqueur, Black Shuck Plum Liqueur and Black Shuck Blackcurrant Liqueur. A limited edition Blush Gin is currently available, which has been created by naturally infusing real fruits.
You can purchase Black Shuck products directly from their website.
Visit their website to find out more
Bullards
In 2017 Bullards won ‘Best London Dry Gin in the World’ in the World Gin Awards; some achievement.
Bullards was the first gin distillery in Norfolk and apparently the only distillery in the UK that uses tonka beans in its recipe. These beans give the gin its distinctive flavour and, in their words, “now world-beating taste”.
Another popular Bullards gin is their Strawberry & Black Pepper variety. Refreshing and aromatic, that is perfect served on a warm summer’s evening. It is slightly sweet from the strawberries, with black pepper added to give the gin a bit of a kick.
Bullards offer distillery tours and tastings where visitors can see first-hand how the gin is made and learn about the history of gin. These take place at their distillery, The Ten Bells, on St Benedicts Street, Norwich.
You can purchase Bullards gins directly from their website, at their distillery and from other high street retailers.
For more information, go to their website
St. Giles Gin
Simon Melton is the founder of St. Giles, a Norfolk-based distillery and maker of fine gin. He spent many years travelling around the globe, discovering unusual places and tasting a wide variety of gins; his passion.
Norfolk is Simon’s home and St. Giles is a historic road in the city of Norwich, (where Simon and his family also have an 18th century shop) as well as an area of London that was synonymous with gin shops in the 18th century. Calling the gin St. Giles Gin made sense on many levels.
St. Giles Gin is hand-crafted using a blend of exotic botanicals and currently there are 3 varieties available: St. Giles Gin, St. Giles Raspberry, Rhubarb & Ginger Gin and St. Giles Divers' Edition Gin (Naval Strength).
You can purchase St. Giles Gin directly from their website or from numerous local and national retailers.
Further information can be found by visiting the company website