A Gin tasting!

My friend Lynda came to pick me up this morning as we were off to a Gin Tasting with Andrea and Fiona at the Warner Edwards distillery in Harrington. We'd been looking forward to it for ages as the Gin is enormously popular and the tours and tastings get booked up really quickly. At the time we didn't know that today was National Gin day!

We were a bit early so we sat in the car park and chatted until the girls arrived. The farm where the Gins are made isn't that big at all, which was surprising, seeing as the brand is now so successful. We were given a Gin of our choice with a Fever Tree mixer and both Andrea and I went for the Honeybee Gin mixed with Mediterranean tonic. Lynda sipped on a Sloe Gin while Fiona went for the London Dry.

We sat outside until the tour began and had a good chat as it had been a while since we'd all seen each other properly. I hadn't finished my drink when the tour started but that was OK as you could take the glass with you! We walked across the road and gazed out over the acres of fields that belonged to the farm. The woman leading the tour gave us a history of how it all started and told us that there were springs in the area that were used in the distilling process.

We then went into a tiny barn that housed "Curiosity" the German made still that produces every bottle of Gin they make. Again, as they are now so successful, another still is on order and the two will be housed side by side in a bigger barn. We were shown all the botanicals that go into the Gin and given juniper berries to squash between our fingers to release the aromas. It was a very informative talk and the lady running it was clearly passionate about the product, as all the staff seem to be.

After this we all sat in the tasting room and tasted all six of the Gins Warner Edwards produces. We started with the London Dry, mixed with a little tonic and then worked our way through the Melissa, Lemon Balm, Elderflower (my favourite), Rhubarb and Sloe Gin. We then had the opportunity to buy whichever ones we wanted and although I had said to Lynda I wasn't going to get anything as I'm a Vodka drinker, I couldn't resist a bottle of the Elderflower as it was delicious.

From the distillery we drove the very short distance to the Tollemache Arms pub and asked if they had a table free for lunch. They said there'd be an hour's wait but after ordering our drinks (Gin cocktails, naturally!) they said we could be seated immediately. Poor Lynda, as the designated driver, stuck to tonic water but our cocktails were delicious.

We had a lovely time and ordered two different breads to eat while we looked at the menu (and to soak up the alcohol!). We all chose the Pork Belly Bites as a starter followed by burgers (Fiona and I), pizza for Andrea and Macaroni cheese for Lynda. We sampled a sweet bottle of Zinfandel Rose with the meal, which at £20, was the only gripe of the meal. I thought it was over-priced for what it was.

We definitely had no room at all for dessert and Lynda very kindly drove us all home. The weather had brightened up a bit and it was great to get back and relax. Amazingly, I didn't fall asleep! When Sophie came home we had a good chat and the rest of my family had dinner while I sat at the table with them. I certainly wasn't hungry!

After dinner we watched a film but I was more interested in the antics of a pair of pigeons on Paul and Sue's roof and gazing at the ever-changing evening sky, which was beautiful!