World Gin Day 2017

HAPPY WORLD GIN DAY!!!

As most of you would already know (especially if you follow us on Instagram!), we at The Small Batch Gift Co are pretty keen on gin.  Or as the 4 year old put it on his Mother's Day poster at kindy recently: "mum's favourite drink: alcohol" (OMG eek!!  Lots of the other posters said "mum's favourite drink: wine" or "coffee"...but alcohol?! I know he meant "gin" but it makes me sound so un-choosy!)

But choosy we are, and rather than bathtub gin, we love all the new Australian craft gins that are popping up. The craft gin scene has exploded in recent years and Australia is kicking goals on the International stage, winning awards at prestigious Spirits competitions.  Many small batch gins incorporate botanicals that are native to their country of origin and Australia has plenty of unique flora to work with!  

When we were looking for a small batch gin to include in our gin+tonic gift box, we wanted to work with a business that made awesome gin in sleek packaging with a focus on sustainability and ethical practices.  Ummmm...it turned out to be a no-brainer...enter The Antipodes Gin Co!

Antipodes Gin is Australia's first (and only!) certified organic and carbon neutral gin, created in 2015 by childhood friends Shane Reid and Rory Gration.  Shane and Rory grew up together in Mildura on the citrus belt of Australia. They first had the idea to create a gin together in 2015 and they knew they wanted it to be organic and carbon-neutral. Rather than just being lip-service or jumping on the bandwagon, they made a mindful decision to seek Australian Organic Certification status, even though this is complex, time consuming and expensive.  

Rory and Shane knew that they wanted sweet orange peel and lemon oil to feature prominently in their botanical lineup (they're from Mildura peeps!), along with native lemon myrtle. They are both passionate cooks and love using Tasmania pepperberry in their kitchens, so that was another key botanical, along with the essential juniper berries. Antipodes gin is triple distilled and refined with pure Australian rainwater.  For tasting notes from a true gin expert and more from the Antipodes boys, check out the full Martini Whisperer review.

So.....that brings us back to World Gin Day!

We have selflessly trawled the internet to bring you our fave cocktail ideas for your gin party today!!  In no particular order, as they are all super awesome:

1. The Negroni Float (as featured on our Instagram page last night!) by Ash Rose Conway. 

2. Cucumber and Fennel Gin & Tonic with Bitters by Ash Rose Conway.

3. The Rhubarb 75 by Colleen Jeffers (a super pretty champagne cocktail with gin+rhubarb!)

4. Gin & Tonic & Coffee, also apparently named the Turbo G&T (you can play around with this one peeps-try espresso or cold brew for the coffee component or a coffee liqueur like Antipodes or Mr Black-or here is a basic recipe by Ms Darlinghurst to get you started!

5. The Basil Smash by The Gin Foundry (this one is so green that it's basically a vegetable so counts as one of your 5!)

Enjoy!  We would love to hear from you if you give one of these a try.

Love Kate and Sarah xx