Colonsay Beverages, producers of Colonsay Beers – Pig’s Paradise, IPA and 80 Shilling – is celebrating the launch of its premium gin, Wild Island Botanic Gin infused with botanicals hand foraged on the remote Inner Hebridean island.
Wild Island Botanic Gin, distilled five times using 100per cent British wheat, is infused with a carefully selected array of six Hebridean botanicals, namely lemon balm, wild water mint, meadowsweet, sea buckthorn, heather flowers and bog myrtle, to give the gin a fresh, crisp and complex character.
A further ten distinct botanicals - Mediterranean lemon peel, orange peel, juniper, coriander, angelica, orris root, liquorice, nutmeg, cassia and cinnamon bark – add depth to the base spirit, which is incredibly smooth to drink even at a 43.7per cent ABV bottling strength.
The company has already produced and sold four 750 bottle batches since its launch in December and has secured two Scottish wholesale agreements and further gains in London, which has meant bringing forward planned production to meet rising demand.
Director, Keith Bonnington said: “Wild Island Gin’s characters make it a fantastic spring or summer tipple and we want to make sure we are part of the gin drinker’s repertoire on the laid back warmer weather occasions. Product availability will be key.
“The spirit has been tailored around one of our core Hebridean botanicals – lemon balm, which is part of the mint family, but carries a beautiful refreshing citrus aroma right through to the glass in your hand. We went a bit heavier than most gins on the dried lemon peel and steeped the botanicals for an unusually long time to release the essential oils in the zest and the result is even better than we had hoped.”
Wild Island Botanic Gin’s signature serve sees a return to a classic style of gin and tonic, using sliced lemon and a twist of peel to reinforce the fresh citrus notes.
The bottle’s distinctive expressionist watercolour interpretation of the island’s Kiloran Bay has been praised by designers. The brand also recently collaborated online with Pink Sheep Studio, and produced Harris Tweed lampshades that were colour matched to the bottle design and lit up the brand’s Facebook page.
Wild Island Botanic Gin is available to buy wholesale from Woodwinters and Sutherland Brothers, online at Drinkmonger.com and through all good independent wine and spirits merchants in Scotland.
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