I mean, its not the toughest decision in the world when your favourite local Gin House gets in contact and asks if you'd like to come along to their brand new, quarterly Gin Festival - OriGin.
I was already a firm fan and regular at their prior premises in Wimborne, however, I had yet to check out their brand new home, right around the corner on Church Street...so somewhat a case of two birds, one stone!
So a bit of info on the event itself, OriGin is just £5pp and includes a complimentary G&T on arrival. This round-the-world odyssey incorporates gins from all corners of the globe, giving attendees the opportunity to sample new local, and international gins, meet with distillers and converse with like-minded gin lovers. Check www.facebook.com/ginhousewimborne for details of the next event, and how to book. Be sure to book early to avoid disappointment as this is a fairly small, but highly popular venue!
So, kicking off this tastebud-tantalising tour, was our very own beautiful Dorset, with representatives from locally produced Conker, Pothecary and BH1 gins all in attendance.
I am, as any of you who follow me will know, already a huge fan of Conker Gin which hails from sunny Southbourne, Bournemouth. I personally have their Original and Navy Strength in my own collection at home, and cannot recommend their gin more highly. Its bloody incredible to be perfectly frank. So it was great to see these guys there and gave me a good opportunity to get to grips with their new Port Barrel Gin... again, fantastic! These guys can do no wrong.
Next up was Pothecary Gin. Again, I already knew of this gin having sampled it a fair few times at local events. Personally the original gin from Pothecary I find a little too floral and heavy on the lavender for my own tastes, however, as I reiterate again and again, this does not reflect on the gins quality whatsoever, its simply not to my own personal taste preferences... I know a lot of people who absolutely adore this gin so if you're a fan of citrus and florals as the leading flavours, definitely give this one a try. However, I did get to sample Pothecary's latest product - Trinity Blend - which boasts just three botanicals! Let me tell you folks, this is one to try! Clean and simple.
Pothecary also offer a Sicilian Blend and a Thai Blend, neither of which I sampled but certainly shall be in the very near future.
Last of the three featured distilleries, were the chaps from BH1 with their brand new, up and coming gin. Hailing from Bournemouth (hence the name), BH1 Gin is created by bartenders, giving them a background insight into what the bar industry would be looking for in a gin. The fruit of their labour is a unique combination of 13 botanicals, featuring pink grapefruit, orange, chamomile and cardamom. The flavour profile is heavy on the chamomile which gives a herbaceous, floral forward savoury palette with a hint of sweetness, which is certainly distinctive.
Alongside the opportunity to chat with the distillers and representatives of these fabulous local gins, Church Street Gin House bar staff themselves are a veritable font of knowledge when it comes to gin, mixers and cocktails, so this was a fantastic opportunity for me to be able to converse in fairly blunt (in my case) terms about botanical favourites and pet hates, and sample some epic gins I had yet to have got my hands on. Notable mention has to go to the epic Bloody Shiraz Gin from Four Pillars which I had been hearing about for so long, but had yet to try. Good golly it was worth the wait folks! Drink it straight, trust me, its just incredible.
Not only do the bar staff seriously know their stuff when it comes to gin....but they make a bloody good cocktail too! Just don't call them Mixologists....except Ashley... he loves that title. Don't be afraid to deviate off the 'House Cocktails' list and ask them to whip something up to match your flavour preferences.
All in all, a bloody exceptional evening with a great selection of local gins in attendance, and a huge variety behind the bar to boot. Keep your eyes peeled for details of the next of these quarterly festivals, and in the meantime, be sure to head on down to Church Street and check the Gin House out. You won't be disappointed.
Thank you to Ashley and Church Street Gin House for inviting me along to this event. I look forward to heading back very soon. I promise not to scare your customers off with my opinions on certain gins next time ;)
Emma-Louise
