Scotland is, famously, saturated with both gin and castles. And now the Queen, resident of Balmoral Castle in Aberdeenshire and well-known to enjoy a daily Dubonnet and Gin before lunch, has a new local tipple to try as Esker Gin launches in Royal Deeside. Indeed, one of Esker’s central botanicals hails from Balmoral’s neighbouring Kincardine Castle Estate.

The origins of Esker Gin, however, are rather less grandiose. Married couple Steven and Lynne Duthie had long shared a love of gin and always enthusiastically sought out new, local gins to try whenever the opportunity presented itself. Over the course of almost two years, Steven and Lynne experimented with local botanicals, and those that featured in some of their favourite gins, in a small 1 litre copper still in their back garden. Having perfected their recipe, the couple invested in a large 100 litre traditional copper pot from Portugal and decided to start producing their gin on a commercial scale.

While Lynne still works within the energy industry, Steven has recently given up his job to fully commit himself to his position of Distiller at Esker Spirits. However, Steven’s previous career as a designer in the oil industry is evident in the modern design of the Esker Gin bottle, which was created in collaboration with RRD Creative. The bottle’s stunning angular lines are intended to represent Royal Deeside’s river, mountains and castles. The look is clean and contemporary, as well it might be: the transparency of the bottle is supposed to showcase the clarity of the spirit as well as to reference the clear waters of the River Dee.