Lots of Gin and some tonic
The Scottish Juniper Festival returned to Summerhall last weekend for its second year. With nearly 30 different types of gin on offer, this was heaven!
Summerhall, Edinburgh
Summerhall is an amazing venue. We had heard a lot about here but never managed to have the time to visit. There are lots of nooks and crannies to explore.
Thankfully there were signs to show the way.
Gin!
We arrived just in time for a masterclass by Jody, the Brand Ambassador for Rock Rose Gin.
Jody, Brand Ambassador
After an outline of the history of Rock Rose Gin, and of course a neat sample. We tried their perfect serve. A different approach for a perfect serve, by using rosemary as their highlighter for the gin. Normally a taste is picked from the gin ingredients e.g citrus to enhance the taste. No rosemary in this gin. What the rosemary did do was give the gin a very different aroma, with the oils wafting around the room after being singed by the burner (sadly not a bunsen burner from the lab!)
He’s a suave man
Rock Rose gin with Fevertree tonic and singed rosemary
We swung into action, trying to catch up on lost time.
Flavouring botanicals from No3 Gin
This was a crisp and very junipery gin. Excllent neat and with tonic. Would be ideal at a boozy picnic.
This image reflects how we felt after the 60%!
Blackwoods Gin were showcasing their 2012 Vintage as well as their 60% gins. The 60% certainly had a kick – the alcohol just disappeared off your lips and left a wow feeling. The crowd around the table went quiet, in shock we think!
Appreciative crowd at Blackwoods Gin Stall
Both gins were tasty neat as well as with tonic, Fentimanns rose lemonade was a popular choice.
Some retro music
We loved the vibe. Retro, hand powered music, twinkly lights and it wasn’t filled to the brim so you could talk to producers and get to move around.
Another room full of gin
We would be here all night writing about each and every gin. So here are some we got to taste in picture form.
Daffy’s, Portobello Road, Jinzu and some great tonic
Pickerings Gin – distilled at Summerhall
TL:DR
+ Gin!
+ Great vibe
+ Well worth the entrance fee
– Ran out of time to try all the gin and chat to everyone we wanted to
Follow Scottish Juniper Festival on Facebook and Twitter and see you there next year!