Brighton Gin, 70 cl – Hand-Crafted Pavilion Strength Original Premium British Craft Gin, Distilled by the Seaside, Vegan & Gluten Free, with Organic Wheat Spirit & Botanicals, Single Bottle

Product Information

Brighton Ginis made with 100% organic grain spirit, juniper, fresh orange and lime peel, locally-grown coriander seed and milk thistle. Each bottle is filled, labelled and wax sealed by hand, the distinctive blue/green colour being that ofBrighton’s famous seafront railings. Kathy: Our initial vast list of botanicals has been whittled down to six, every one of which has earned its place in the bottle. We’ve created a gin that is smooth enough to be sipped neat and is certified vegan too, so it can be drunk with a clear conscience. Kathy Caton: The idea for Brighton Gin came to me as an absolute light-bulb moment. I was out for a seafront run, the morning after a very late night on the gins (Plymouth Gin to be precise) dancing around a friend’s kitchen table – I got thinking that if I’d been drinking anything other than gin, I wouldn’t have been off my sofa, let alone going for a run! It started with months of experimentationwith different ingredients, combinations, distilling techniques and approaches, and more than one or two accidents along the way (but we lived to tell the tale!) and lots of trying out recipes on fellow gin-loving friends until we finally hit the perfect blend.

There’s a really rich heritage of brewing and more recently wine-making in this part of the country, but much less so on a distilling front – it’s been amazing to start something new for the city. I read an interesting piece about Brighton Gin sometime ago. It was suggested that Milk Thistle (one of the novel botanicals disclosed) was included because the plant itself contains silymarin, a compound reputed to have beneficial effects on the liver. WebMD says the jury’s out, while academic articles seem to indicate there’s some potential there that is being looked at further. The compound itself isn’t soluble in water, but it is soluble in ethanol. Meaning at higher proofs, you’ll get more of it. [solubility is the factor at play when the Ouzo effect/Louche occurs in higher proof spirits, the addition of water causes certain compounds to come out of solution].

Tasting Notes

Small batch, super premium Brighton Gin has won a Silver Medal at the International Spirits Challenge Tasting Awards 2018. Seen as the most authoritative, respected and influential spirits competition in the world, the awards attract over 1500 entries from 70 countries and is considered the international standard for quality and excellence. I also love that gin is now enjoyed across the gender and age spectrum. When I was at university, a hundred years ago, I was laughed at for drinking gin as “that’s my nan’s drink”. It’s now enjoyed across the generations, all drinking it in different ways, and it doesn’t have that perceived gender barrier that, say, single malt whisky does. Brighton Gin is made from 100% organic grain spirit, juniper, fresh orange and lime peel, locally-grown coriander seed, angelica and milk thistle, which is indigenous to the South Downs and renowned for its kindness to the liver function (albeit I have to legally say, most probably not when part of a gin!).

If you want to give a tour as a present to your loved ones (or yourself!), scroll down further for the link to our gift vouchers! As a hand-crafted product that takes time and a lot of hands to make, our focus is on quality and consistency, not volume. It’s a labour-intensive production method but we’re proud of it. It’s also keeping my mum St Jude gainfully employed and out of trouble! GG: You have been working with Ellie since the outset and she is Chief Gin Peddler for the business – why did you choose this title? The light bulb moment was that (in my experience!) gin is the one drink that lets you get away with it. Brighton is a place that needs to get away with it on a frequent basis, and I thought ta da, the spirit of Brighton – Brighton needs its own gin.Mainly though it’s through not sleeping very much, working every hour and also having an absolutely brilliant team, they not only keep the good ship Brighton Gin afloat but make it (largely!) a joy to work here. Meet us, the makers of small-batch, super premium Brighton Gin with a behind-the-scenes tour of our distillery. Find out more about the history of craft gin, how Brighton Gin started on a kitchen table by the seaside, and the processes and botanicals we use to create Brighton’s favourite tipple today. On The Tour