Ireland may be synonymous with whiskey, but a crop of new Irish gin distillers have bestowed this classic tipple with an endless supply of cool points. If you're looking for a last-minute gift for the Irish gin aficionado in your life (we guarantee you know at least one!) or you just fancy trying something new, you're in luck - three years ago, we'd have struggled to find a dozen gins for this list, but these days, we're absolutely spoiled for choice! The question is how many of these Irish gin brands do you have on your shelf? And if you fancy upping your cocktail game, we've got you covered there too! Read until the end for a fun gin cocktail recipe...
1. Bertha's Revenge
Wedding venue extraordinaire Ballyvolane House is behind this small batch Cork gin, which is unique in its use of whey alcohol from local dairy farmers. The brand's new sloe gin uses berries plucked from the hedgerows around Ballyvolane House and is perfect for cocktail-lovers, or anyone who likes their gin on the sweet side.
2. Blacks Irish Gin
If you're partial to the Blacks range of craft beers, you may be excited to hear about the Kinsale brand's latest project, Blacks Irish Gin, a bold small batch flavoured with 13 botanicals, including Irish heather flowers picked along the Wild Atlantic Way.
3. Blackwater
There are a trio of gins in Backwater's arsenal; their crisp and versatile small batch, Blackwater No. 5; the award-winning Blackwater Juniper, which is aged in a cask made from juniper wood, and Blackwater Wexford Strawberry, which delivers a taste of summer all year 'round. All three are distilled in Cappoquin in County Waterford.
4. Boatyard
The Boatyard distillery on the shores of Lough Erne is less than two years old, but the Fermanagh brand has already scored rave reviews for their two gins; Boatyard Old Tom, which is aged in Wild Turkey bourbon barrels and sweetened with local honey, and their signature gin, Boatyard Double.
5. Bonac 24
Smooth and floral with a refreshing, fruity finish, this Wicklow gin is so-named because its formula is the 24th recipe created by father-and-son team Michael and Gavin Clifford. 24th time's a charm!
6. Boyle's Gin
There's no need to trek to a specialist store to try an Irish-made gin - the award-winning Boyle's Gin is made by Blackwater distillery in Waterford (see no. 3 on our list!) exclusively for Aldi and flavoured with local botanicals like blackcurrants, apples and elderflower. Sure, it'd be rude not to pick up a bottle during the grocery shop!
7. Brennan's Old House Gin
A 400-year-0ld thatched farmhouse in Ballinakill, Co. Laois, is the birthplace of this traditional small batch, which boasts a hand-dipped wax seal and takes inspiration from the surrounding meadows of heather, fields of corn and hedgerows of ripe frocken berries.
8. Concullin Irish Gin
Ballina's Connacht Distillery was conceived as a home for whiskey, but the Mayo brand have since added gin, vodka and even poitÃn to their roster! Concullin Irish Gin is their award-winning small batch, which features a signature blend of juniper supported by hawthorn berry, elderberry and other botanicals for a complex flavour profile.
9. Dingle Gin
Winner of countless taste awards, Dingle Gin may be classified as a London Dry Gin, but it's 100% Irish in both recipe and origins - it's distilled in Kerry with Irish botanicals that give it a fresh, floral character.
10. Dublin City Gin
You'd think it would be tough to incorporate local flavours into a gin produced in a capital city, but the folk at Dublin City Gin have done it, using organic rhubarb grown along the Grand Canal! The result is a dry gin with a silky finish, thanks to its milk-spirit base.
11. Drumshanbo Gunpowder Irish Gin
The Shed Distillery in Drumshanbo, Co. Leitrim, is where you'll find PJ Rigney's unique spirit creation, which fuses Irish botanicals with Asian ones, including Chinese lemon, Kaffir lime and Oriental grapefruit. And we could not be more in love with that blue bottle!
www.drumshanbogunpowderirishgin.com
12. Echlinville Irish Pot Still Gin
Flavours of land and sea meet in this Co. Down tipple, which is uses whin bush petals and Strangford Lough seaweed to create a sweet and smooth gin with a hint of malt from Echlinville’s homegrown barley.
13. Eglinton Galway Gin
Created for Galway city centre watering hole An Púcán, Eglinton is Galway's first gin, which has garnered much praise for its infusion of floral and citrus botanicals.
14. Galway Gin Co.
Vibrant lemon and Atlantic dillisk (that's seaweed to us non-experts!) combine to make the unique flavour of this Galway gin, which is equally well suited to G&Ts and cocktails.
15. Glendalough Seasonal Gin
Depending on what time of the year it is, this Wicklow-made gin always tastes different. Just 3,000 bottles are produced each for spring, summer, autumn and winter, using everything from to wild raspberries to elderberry. The brand also produces a combination of all four seasons, Glendalough Wild Botanical, a seaweed-infused variety, Glendalough Dillisk, and a sloe gin, Glendalough Sloe.
16. Ha'penny Dublin Dry Gin
Inspired by the iconic Dublin bridge of the same name, this small batch gin is a mix of 13 botanicals blackberry, lavender and orange peel. The producers recommend you serve it with a slice of apple, a stick of celery and some craft tonic water. That counts as salad, right?
17. Highbank Organic Crystal Irish Gin
Kilkenny's Highbank Orchards put their apples to work on everything from cider to apple liqueur to apple-flavoured vodka, as well as two gins; Organic Irish Crystal, their signature blend of 12 botanicals including lavender and blackcurrant, and Organic Pink Flamingo, a rose-coloured variety with undertones of cinnamon, coriander, and citrus.
18. Jawbox Classic Dry Gin
The folk from Echlinville distillery in Co. Down (see no.12 on this list!) are behind this bold, traditional gin which is made in the classic, London Dry style. Producers recommend you serve it with simple ice and tonic, or with another Northern Irish creation - ginger ale (this is news to us, too!)
19. Listoke 1777 Gin
Jasmine, cardamom, and rowan berries are among the botanicals in this Co. Louth creation, which was designed to be enjoyed neat or with ice and a slice of orange peel, but also holds up well in cocktails. The distillery is also home to the Listoke Gin School, a three-hour course which invites visitors to taste three gins before designing their very own gin from a wealth of prepared botanicals and take a bottle of their unique blend home with them. It's perfect for a hen party or stag do!
20. MÃl Gin
It may have an Irish name, but the newly-launched MÃl Gin has a Mediterranean feel thanks to its collection of botanicals, which includes orange, almond, olive, and basil. This one is perfect for posh G&Ts, served in an enormous globe glass with a twist of grapefruit rind (and a basil leaf if you're feeling extra fancy!)
21. Mór Irish Gin
From Arderin Distillery in Tullamore, Co. Offaly, comes a sharp, sweet and citrusy gin that uses Slieve Bloom mountain water and boasts hints of floral rosemary.
22. No. 57 Irish Gin
Created by and for the much-loved Headline Bar on Dublin's Clanbrassil St., No. 57 is one of the more mysterious gins on our list - its recipe is top secret! - but there's no ignoring that hit of spicy ginger! Only a handful of stores stock this one, so it'll impress the discerning drinkers among your crew.
www.https://twitter.com/no57irishgin
23. Old Carrick Mill
The first distillery in Co. Monaghan for a whopping 157 years, Old Carrick Mill uses traditional techniques and limestone-filtered spring water to make their Small Batch Irish Gin, a tipple steeped in history.
24. Shortcross Gin
Smooth and aromatic, Shortcross Gin from Rademon Estate Distillery in Co. Down is the perfect all-rounder, equally good on its own with ice or in a festive cocktail (see recipe below!)
25. Silver Spear
The botanicals in this handcrafted dry gin from Ballydarton House in Co. Carlow come from four continents but the end product is unmistakably Irish. Smyth and O’Reilly Artisan Irish Distillers even named their product after the medal awarded to the former man-of-the-house, Captain J H Watson.
26. St. Patrick's
There are four gins to try from St. Patrick's Distillery in Cork, which also produces whiskey and vodka; Classic Juniper, Extra Dry, three-time award-winner Elderflower, and the sweet and crisp Sloe and Honey. Don't make us choose!
27. The Exiles
The inclusion of shamrock in this multi-award winning Cork gin may seem gimmicky, but don't be fooled by the unconventional recipe - the balance of green and floral botanicals make it perfect for classic cocktails like Negroni or Tom Collins.
28. Thin Gin
This award-winning gin from Waterford uses orange peel, apple, heather flowers, elderflower and chamomile to balance out the flavour of the essential juniper, making it easy to pair with almost any mixer.
29. Two Trees Gin
West Cork Distillers have put their name to whiskeys, vodka and poitÃn, so they weren't playing around when they developed their Two Trees small batch, which uses coriander leaf, lemon peel, orange peel and liquorice root to create a versatile gin in the typical London Dry style.
30. Von Hallers
With a name like Von Hallers, you may have already guessed that this Leitrim-distilled has an international connection - its botanicals are all hand-picked in Germany, resulting in an aromatic and pure-tasting gin. PJ Rigney, the mastermind behind Drumshanbo Gunpowder Irish Gin (see no.11 on this list!) is responsible for the recipe, which gets transferred from paper to bottle at The Shed Distillery in Drumshanbo.
31. Wild Burrow Gin
Lidl's Irish offering is a big hit with shoppers - so much so, that you'll have a hard time finding its limited edition London Dry-style incarnation in stores this week! The original version should still hit the spot - with wild garlic and furze among its botanicals, the West Cork creation has got serious character.
RECIPE
The Cross Club
by Alan Glynn of Dublin's 37 Dawson Street, via www.shortcrossgin.com
Ingredients
- 40ml Shortcross Gin
- 20ml Raspberry Puree
- 10ml Pineapple Syrup
- 25ml Lemon Juice
- 3 leaves Chocolate Mint
- 1 Egg White
Method
- Add an ingredients to shaker and reverse dry shake, serve in a coupe-style glass.
- Add dehydrated pineapple, mint leaf and lemon and raspberry mist as an optional garnish.
