What made you decide to create Mean Gin?
I’ve never been in the industry, but over the past 6-7 years have developed a (large!) interest in gin. I have a pretty big selection at home, and after doing a tasting one day I decided that none fit my own tastes perfectly – so I set out to make one that did! How did you get from the idea to the finished product? I started off doing tiny test distillations at home in Greenwich, experimenting with the botanicals I thought I’d like best. Over the course of perhaps 25 tests over 18 months, adding and removing probably 30 different botanicals, I got to my final product (incorporating 10 of those botanicals). I then approached Charles Maxwell at Thames Distillers for guidance on production and bottling – he and his team helped with final touches, and we were finally off and running! What’s the story behind the Mean Gin name? The name and branding all ties directly back to Greenwich, with the brand named after Greenwich Mean Time, with the tagline (Prime Meridian Spirit) and bottle design relating to the Prime Meridian. How would you describe Mean Gin in 3 words? Fresh, Versatile, Classic What makes Mean Gin gin different? Again it comes back to versatility - Mean is a Classic London Dry so there are no gimmicks or overpowering flavours, just a very high quality spirit. It works well in basically any gin-based drink, and the feedback we’ve had so far suggests people have been able to be very creative with how it’s served. What's your favourite way to serve and garnish Mean Gin? In a G&T, it’s great with an aromatic or herbal tonic and an orange peel/slice garnish. I like a third of my G&T to be gin. Cocktail-wise, I don’t think you can beat a Negroni Sour! What are your favourite gins (other than Mean Gin of course!)? My favourite, and probably the gin that kickstarted my obsession, is Tanqueray Malacca. It’s a great example of one of the big brands doing something classic, but interesting. What's next for Mean Gin? We’ll be starting retail sales via our website (meangin.com) very soon. Generally, over the next year we want to get Mean into the glasses of as many people as we can! Comments are closed.
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