Deciding which gin to stock up on is, as we all know, a difficult decision. If like me, you choose your drink depending on your mood, 2020 has given us the opportunity to try new things while we’ve had more time on our hands at home. One of my positives of lockdown has been tantalising my taste buds with new recipes and the chance to safely enjoy more alcoholic delights.
Gin seems to fit the bill perfectly. Especially Tiger Gin. Started by a Shropshire gin lover, JJ Lawrence turned his gin obsession into his mission ‘to create the best tasting Gin in the world!’ Its awards reveal it has already been recognised as one of the best gins in the world, it is one of the most awarded gins in the world and is one of the most followed gin brands on social media. Tiger is clearly doing something right!
Distilled by an award winning, family owned business which is also local to Lawrence, Tiger have produced 2 types of gin; Tiger and Ruby.
Tiger Gin is a premium quality gin with a unique sense of ‘lightness’ to it. By that, I mean it is one of those that’s easy to drink and refreshingly flavoursome, which is unusual for a plain gin. It has a hint of botanicals and spices which have been blended with pure English water. It feels smooth and very slightly citrusy, which allows you to drink it without feeling heavy headed. I mixed it with a plain Indian Fever Tree tonic and ice, and found that was all it needed. The flavour spoke for itself and I promptly refilled my empty glass with another.
Ruby
Their other gin is Ruby, a pink gin. I am a huge fan of pink gin but certainly don’t like it too sweet, so I was interested to try this one. I drank it blind to see what flavours I could pick out and found it difficult to be precise, as it was different from the standard pink gins on the market.
Again, there was a lightness to it with a very well-balanced flavour offering fruitiness without too much sweetness. I was not left disappointed. When I checked the flavours, it was, in fact, rhubarb which was a lovely surprise. The mix with the botanicals was spot on and all it needed was a plain Fever Tree tonic and ice. The colour of the gin looked tempting in the glass and the aromas were delicately enticing.
Gin as a marketplace is expected to grow by over 7.5% between 2020-2025. Interestingly enough, the statistics say that the United Kingdom has the biggest gin market in the world, so it is wonderful to see another British brand. Tiger Gin deserves to do well, having had to fight to get established when it hit the shelves in 2016. As Tiger Gin themselves explain on their website, they had to take on Heineken in a court case where Heineken claimed that Tiger Gin was too similar to their own Tiger Beer, and it wasn’t until JJ won in the High Court that they were allowed to launch.
The branding of Tiger Gin is superb. The bottle labels look good on your shelf and the brand has a style to it, making a fashionable drink seem even cooler. Even their straplines are fun, familiar and with humour. If you want to try something great and British, try Tiger Gin.
In the meantime, I shall pour myself another glass. Cheers!