Cheers! Shropshire distillery wins Best in Britain awards
A gin distilled in Shropshire has been crowned Best in Britain.
Henstone Distillery’s lightly oak aged Rosé Gin has won 'Best in Britain 2023' in the prestigious Gin Guide Awards.
The Oswestry-based Henstone's London Dry and Navy were also winners and it took home the 'Distillery of the Year 2023' award too.
Hundreds of gins from over 35 countries around the world took part in The Gin Guide Awards 2023, in categories based on the most popular styles of gin and their countries of production, as well as Design and Branding, and Environmental Sustainability categories.
Chris Toller, co-founder and director of Henstone Distillery said the winners are selected each year through a rigorous blind tasting process conducted by a panel of distinguished gin experts, including distillers, spirits buyers for retailers, authors, and mixologists.
Each gin’s appearance, aroma, flavour, mouthfeel, finish and overall quality are assessed to determine the highest scoring gins, based purely on the spirit itself and with no influence from branding, marketing or the country of origin.
“Our Rosé Gin has been in production for nearly five years and for it now to win Best in Britain is amazing," said Chris.
"We are all so proud that we have achieved this in such a crowded category. Also, for our distillery, based in rural Shropshire, to win Distillery of the Year against stiff international competition is the icing on the cake.”
Head judge Paul Jackson, the founder and editor of The Gin Guide, said: “The quality and diversity of gins has been absolutely remarkable. British gins and international gins alike showed the depth of skill in distillation and product development that continues to grow in the industry and that is undoubtedly becoming more prevalent in emerging gin markets.
"Gins from new and growing markets hugely impressed the industry-leading judging panels and showed how gin has truly cross borders and is an exciting product in markets across the world that are traditionally more connected with other spirits.”
“Huge congratulations and credibility go to all the winners, highly commended gins and finalists.
"The Gin Guide Awards names just a small number of winners in each category to ensure genuine exclusivity and to protect the value of the awards and its proven ability to guide trade and consumer buying decisions. It is why being a winner in The Gin Guide Awards has become one of the most revered achievements in the industry and previous winners have used their success to take their businesses to the next level."
