A Cornish artisan gin producer has been named as Gin of the Month by Jamie Oliver’s prestigious Fifteen in London.
Trevethan Distillery was awarded the accolade by the celebrity chef’s restaurant for its signature, handcrafted Cornish gin recipe.
Director Robert Cuffe said,
“We were absolutely thrilled to have been named Gin of the Month for December. As a small, craft business from Saltash that still creates each batch as it was first crafted by my grandfather back in the 1920s, it’s a testament to the history and passion behind our gin.
It’s a unique and truly Cornish gin, with the proportions of each botanical carefully calculated in order to achieve the complex flavours and smooth texture in one distillation. The fact that such an influential, high end establishment like Jamie Oliver’s Fifteen London has recognised this is an incredible achievement and a real honour.”
Trevethan’s success as a heavyweight in today’s thriving gin culture has gone from strength to strength with the launch of two new products; Chauffeur’s Reserve Cornish Gin, a complex and fragrant gin with an added Navy strength finish, and Honey Oak Cornish Gin, a smooth oak flavoured gin with a hint of Cornish honey sweetness.
Following the release of these new products, both Trevethan’s Facebook followers and traffic to its website have doubled.
The Gin of the Month title bolsters an already impressive trophy cabinet for the young craft company, having also received silver medals from the International Wine and Spirit Competition (IWSC) and Great Taste Awards from the Guild of Fine Food for the past two years consecutively. In addition, the world’s first and definitive spirits information directory Difford’s Guide classed its original gin as ‘exceptional,’ awarding it a top rating with five stars.
The original Trevethan Gin recipe was created by Robert’s grandfather Norman Trevethan in 1929 whilst he was working as a chauffeur to Earl and Lady St Germans. During this heavily influential period, Norman created his own ‘bath tub’ gin through a combination of his experience of country brewing crafts and his influences as a high society chauffeur, and sold it to friends and family.
The recipe had been lost to the world for over 70 years - until Norman’s grandson and his business partner John Hall decided to breathe life back into Trevethan Distillery.
Robert emphasised,
“My Cornish roots and enthusiasm for process engineering was what essentially lead me full circle and back to re-ignite this family tradition. I loved my grandfather’s recipe, but me and my business partner John wanted to take it that one step further and now we’re focusing on producing some of the best spirits that Cornwall has to offer.”
John, fellow Director, explained,
“I’m a chemist by trade and when I heard about Norman Trevethan’s family gin recipe, I just couldn’t resist the opportunity to put my lab coat on again and try to recreate a recipe that had been buried for more than half a century.
Each batch is expertly distilled by hand at our craft facility in Cornwall,”
he continued.
“The small quantities that we produce help to create our unique flavour and give every batch its own signature character. Complex, with subtle hints of citrus and floral notes, our gin is made using botanicals sourced from our very own Cornish hedgerows for a true taste of Cornwall. It’s been an incredible exciting ride so journey and we can’t wait to see what 2018 has in store for us.”
Brits bought more than 47 million bottles of gin this year, largely driven by the growth of small-batch craft distillers, and sales of the spirit in the UK have doubled in value in the last six years, reaching L1.2 billion over the last 12 months according to a recent market report by the Wine and Spirit Trade Association (WSTA).