With both a Port-O Party and a Pisco Disco, July has been a pretty fun one! There’s also a fair bit of booze news and new gins to catch up with so do read on…

Booze News

More sad news this month. Over in the States, Diageo has shut Aviation Gin’s Oregon visitor centre, just three years after it opened, due to “evolving business needs”. Meanwhile, here in the UK, Scotland’s Secret Garden Distillery – which was awarded the IWSC UK Gin Producer Trophy award in 2025 – has entered voluntary liquidation and is no longer trading.

New Gin Alerts

I thought July might be a quiet month for gin releases but I was wrong! Of course you can always rely on Tarquin’s to have something new up their sleeve and this month they revealed their latest creation; a Mojito Gin made in collaboration with Padstow Kitchen Garden. The first batch sold out within just 3 days, but batch 2 is available now!

At the other end of the country Eden Mill Distillery has released Summer in St Andrews Gin, which features local raspberries and strawberries alongside rhubarb and a sharp kick of lemon. There are just 500 bottles available so, if you want one, you’d better be quick!

Last but certainly not least, France’s Citadelle Gin has created a limited edition Barbadian gin distilled at Stade’s West Indies Rum Distillery. Featuring pink grapefruit, hibiscus, bay leaf and lemongrass Citadelle Bajan is described as bright, citrus-forward, and sun-soaked which sounds pretty tasty to me!

My Month in Gin

I kicked off the month by attending Cockburn’s wonderful Port-O Party, to celebrate the launch of their new Vat & Barrel Reserve Tawny Port, at 58 and CO! On arrival we were greeted with a wonderfully light and refreshing Porto Branco Fine White Port and Mediterranean Tonic which was absolutely perfect for this warm weather. We then sat down to taste a selection of Cockburn’s Ports – including their Late Bottled Vintage, 10 Year Old Tawny and Quinta Dos Canais 2018 – each of which was paired with a perfect little snack. But of course the highlight was getting to know the beautiful Vat & Barrel Reserve Tawny Port. With notes of fruit cake and subtle spice it is delicious neat, but also works wonderfully in Cocktail Carmen’s Port Bramble (which we all got to make for ourselves!) as well as simply poured over ice cream!

The evening was a real revelation; not only was I impressed by the variety and versatility of Port, but enjoying it chilled absolutely convinced me that it shouldn’t be saved for Christmas: it is definitely a drink for all seasons! If you haven’t tried Port and Tonic yet, I really recommend it (especially if you’re looking for a lower ABV, and cheaper, alternative to G&T)! And if you want to pick up a bottle of Vat & Barrel Reserve Tawny Port it will be on sale at Ocado from the end of this month.

As if a Port-O Party wasn’t enough fun for one month, I also attended a Pisco Disco at Hackney Wick’s Colour Factory, just a short stroll from home! Hosted by Movimientos and ProChile, we had the huge pleasure of learning all about South America’s grape spirit as well as sampling three brands, including ABA, both neat and in a cocktail. While my favourite was probably Pisco Waqar it’s pretty hard not to be drawn to Capel Moai Pisco‘s distinctive Moai-inspired bottle which pays tribute to the famous stone statues of Rapa Nui National Park (aka Easter Island)!

Welcome to My Collection

In addition to a wonderful and very generous goody bag from Cockburn’s Port-O Party, I was also delighted to receive a bottle of Fora Terroir Gin all the way from Andorra, a superb Spritz Kit from No.3 Organic London Dry Gin to celebrate National Spritz Day on 1st August, and a gorgeous little gin pin from Patience Distillery.

Catching Up and Looking Forward

I am really looking forward to two weeks away doing next to nothing next month, but I might squeeze in a day of judging for IWSC too. Hope you have a wonderful August and see you on the other side! 🍸🛎🛎