When Sam Galsworthy of Sipsmith gin applied for a distilling licence to make gin in 2009, he was informed that no one had done such a thing in London for nearly 200 years.
How times change. There are now at least 24 distilleries in London, predominantly making gin. Sales of the once unfashionable spirit reached £1.9bn in the UK in 2018, according to the Wine and Spirits Trade Association. Production of spirits is booming: the number of distilleries of all types in Britain increased from 170 in 2017 to 205 in 2018, according to a new report by the law firm RPC.
Aside from traditional juniper-infused London dry gin, there is now toasted marshmallow gin, parma violet gin, cherry bakewell gin, a Unicorn Tears gin and lavender gin that changes colour on contact with tonic. UK sales of flavoured and coloured gins grew by 751% last year; bar displays look like toy shops.
Like many in the industry, Dawn Davies of the online retailer Whisky Exchange doesn’t necessarily see the boom as great news for distillers. “We saw a similar thing when flavoured vodkas became popular a decade ago,” she says. “When flavours start to dominate, it can signal the beginning of a decline. Brands need to be careful not to dilute their ranges with hundreds of flavours.”
For consumers, novelty is a key factor. Violet gin stands out on a supermarket shelf, and looks better on Instagram. Rhubarb, strawberry and orange are popular flavours. But it is getting harder for more traditional brands to distinguish themselves. “We are finding that standard gins are in small or flat growth, depending on the brand,” says Davies. “Consumers are loyal to gin, but not necessarily to any particular brand.”
There are good flavoured gins on the market: Sacred’s Christmas pudding gin is more subtle than it sounds; Sipsmith’s orange and cacao gin is warm and mellow. But most flavoured gins are actually liqueurs, with varying amounts of sugar, flavours and colours added. That’s no bad thing, necessarily – as long as you treat them like liqueurs. Edinburgh pomegranate and rose liqueur gin is way too sweet to use as a base for a cocktail or a gin and tonic, but 5-10ml added to a regular gin martini is heavenly.
Among bartenders, gin often now elicits the same weary reaction that vodka did 10 years ago. Rum is instead seen as the tipple with the greatest potential. You might want to start honing your mai tai recipe.
