The working distillery of the World’s Most Awarded Gin, Beefeater, and the UK’s oldest working Gin distillery, Black Friars Distillery, Plymouth, are throwing open the doors from this week
The working distillery of the World’s Most Awarded Gin, Beefeater, and the UK’s oldest working Gin distillery, Black Friars Distillery, Plymouth, are throwing open the doors from this week
The brand homes of Beefeater and Plymouth Gin will re-open this week, giving guests the opportunity to once again go on a sensory journey through each brand’s unique history and production process. Both global brands are hand-crafted by a small team of distillers and visitors will get the opportunity to meet the stillmen, as well as have the chance to smell and touch each of the botanicals that make each Gin but most importantly, taste the finished product.
The oldest working distillery in England, and where Plymouth has been made since 1793, will re-open to visitors wishing to tour the distillery and visit the distillery shop. The bar will re-open later this the month to coincide with other on-trade venues in the area, however, in the meantime, the team have developed a takeaway cocktail solution for the local community and tour guests to enjoy.
Beefeater’s distillery in Kennington, and home to the World’s Most Awarded Gin, will for the time being only open on Friday, Saturday and Sunday’s to guests. Based in the heart of London, the brand encapsulates the Spirt of London and the distillery is one of the city’s best-kept secrets. The world’s most experienced gin distiller, Desmond Payne, MBE, still oversees the sole production of the iconic London Dry Gin, which is hand-crafted to a recipe that is unchanged since the 1800s.
Louise Ryan, Managing Director, The Gin Hub, comments: “As the UK begins to ease lockdown rules, we’re delighted to re-open the doors of both our UK distilleries to consumers. Beefeater and Plymouth aim to create truly memorable experiences and convivial moments for our visitors, and we place the utmost importance on the safety and wellbeing of our guests and employees. The Gin category has been remarkably resilient during the COVID-19 pandemic and I am extremely proud of the teams at both distillery sites for ensuring production continued, uninterrupted during the pandemic. We can’t wait for consumers to see the hard work and dedication that goes into making our hand-crafted, Premium+ Gins once more.”
Both sites will open with new health and safety measures in place to ensure guests can enjoy their experience safely and with confidence. Pernod Ricard UK has been supporting communities and the hospitality industry during the COVID-19 pandemic. Initiatives include: a donation of £250,000 to industry charity The Drinks Trust, a partnership with the WSET to offer 2,000 online training courses for free, a 'Back to Work Guide' for the on-trade and the production of 20,000 litres of hand sanitiser, which was produced by the Plymouth distillery and made available free of charge to frontline healthcare workers battling the pandemic in the local community as well as other communities nationwide.