April’s been a pretty busy month with lots of fun events, and May is look set to be even busier still, so let’s get on with this Gin Monthly before I run out of time!

Booze News

The news that caught my eye this month was that a UK-wide deposit return scheme is now likely to be implemented in October 2027, instead of October 2025. However, given how controversial (and uncertain) that remains, let’s focus instead on the fact that The Gin Guide 2024 Finalists have been confirmed. Winners will be announced on Wednesday 8th May 2024, so congratulations and good luck to everyone who made the first cut!

New Gin Alerts

As far as I’m concerned, this month’s most exciting release has to be Procera Green Dot 2023 Vintage made from only the berries, foliage and wood of a single African Procera juniper tree. Coming in at a hefty £135 price tag (!) you might, however, rather consider the more reasonable I’ll Remember You – a collaboration between Withers Gin and the D-Day Darlings to commemorate the 80th anniversary of D-Day (£44) – or The Criterion Gin, created for the St Andrew’s bar of the same name by Tayport Distillery and featuring juniper, citrus, blackcurrants and raspberries (£38). It would also be remiss of me not to mention Tanqueray No. Ten’s stunning new bottle, and Aviation Gin’s six – yes, six!– limited edition bottles to commemorate the release of Deadpool & Wolverine.

My Month in Gin

Thanks to good old British transport I didn’t have a lot of time to enjoy everything on offer at Speciality Drinks’ Raising the Back Bar event, but I did manage to make it to two brilliant masterclasses. The first was an introduction into all things agave and included a tasting of five spirits of which my favourite was Mezcal Los Siete Misterios Coyote. The second was an opportunity to finally meet Barney of Capreolus Distillery and Garden Swift Gin fame!

I’ve always admired Barney’s passion and pursuit of perfection, but it was just remarkable to revisit such an amazing selection of his exquisite eaux de vie, especially since my knowledge, understanding and palate have developed. I was blown away by everything I tasted but it is the Raspberry Eau de Vie that I just can’t stop thinking about.

I also had a wonderful time celebrating Earth Day with not one but two spirit brands! The first was the launch of super sustainable Stauning Danish Whisky‘s latest release at beautiful Bloomsbury Flowers London. In addition to meeting co-founder Martin Vesterby and learning all about the history of Stauning, we were also treated to a taste of HØST; a delicious double malt whisky made from locally sourced Danish rye and barley and matured on-site in heavily charred American oak casks and and first-fill Port barriques. I’m still fairly new to whisky, but found HØST remarkably approachable and loved its smooth, slightly sweet, fruity notes.

The second Earth Day event was a celebration of Martinique’s Rhum J.M’s commitment to sustainable development – in the form of their Edden Project – at La Goccia in Covent Garden. In addition to a presentation about the project, we were treated to a tasting of the range, delicious canapés and delightful cocktails!

I also had an absolute blast at Whitebox’s Cocktail Party at MAMA Shelter Shoreditch! In addition to cracking canned cocktails and truly scrumptious finger food, we also had the opportunity to try all three of Whitebox’s new ready-to-serve classics. Due to a little miscommunication I missed out on the XO Vieux Carré, but the Straight-Up Daiquiri is deliciously sweet with sugar and sour with sharp lime, and the Spicy Margarita is wonderfully well judged with just the right level of heat – so long as you don’t allow your chilli garnish to fall in your glass and fester for too long!

And I may also have fallen a little bit more in love with the party pocket negroni…!

Finally I had the huge pleasure of popping down the road for the opening of Jim & Tonic East’s Rum House. Unfortunately the great British weather rained off the opening of the new rooftop bar, but we certainly didn’t allow it to rain on our parade!

In addition to flaming drinks and a cocktail-making session, head distiller Hendré Barnard generously treated us to an extended tasting of their spirits – including their extensive gin range, triple sec and tasty Canadian Rye Maple Whisky Liqueur – as well as patiently explaining how they produce such a huge range in such a relatively small space. With one restaurant, two bars, a double-decker bus and plenty of outdoor sitting just a stone’s throw from ABBA Voyage (and not too far from my home either), I’ll definitely be returning when the sun comes out to play!

Welcome to My Collection

In addition to generous goody bags from Stauning Whisky, Rhum J.M and Jim & Tonic, I was also over the moon to receive a small but mighty sample of Procera Green Dot Vintage 2023, the new Cosmopolitan and Paloma canned cocktails from MOTH: and, amazingly, the entire range from The Green Room Distillery: Encore Sloe Gin; Theatre Dry Gin; Flyman’s Strength Gin; Houselight Gin; Smoke & Mirrors Gin; and Revival Vodka!

Catching Up and Looking Forward

With plenty of events, judging and deadlines – as well as some silly little thing called #GinADayMay – next month is going to be super busy! Wish me luck and hopefully see you on the ‘gram! 🍸🛎🛎