Award-winning gin distillery hopes to sell on site

Award-winning gin distillery hopes to sell on site

Belfast Artisan Gin Distillery is hoping to get the greenlight to sell their award winning products from their own facility.

A planning application has been submitted to Antrim and Newtownabbey Borough Council for a gin sales outlet at a distillery at Mallusk Enterprise Park in Newtownabbey.

The Belfast Artisan Gin School was launched in 2018 and offers participants the opportunity to make and distil their own gin. Previously, it was based at The Crown and Shamrock Inn, in Newtownabbey.

Director Jo Davison said: “Up until now, our distillery has been our production base. We have recently applied for our local producers’ licence which allows us to welcome visitors to our our distillery to see where and how our spirits are made and to sample our products.

“We hope to be able to sell our spirits directly from our distillery to anyone visiting for a tour. We create premium small batch craft spirits. Belfast Artisan Distillery Gin is a London Dry Gin with a Belfast twist.

“We use three locally inspired botanicals when distilling our gin to give it that Belfast twist – rowan berries which you will find growing across Northern Ireland give our gin a sweet heat, pink heather which you will find growing on the local Cavehill gives our gin a light floral top note and flaxseed, our nod to the linen industry in Belfast gives our gin its smoothness.

“We also produce two gin liqueurs, raspberry and elderflower and pineapple and blood orange and we produce an Irish vodka. We look forward to welcoming visitors and sharing our story of our locally produced small batch spirits.”

The company recently took part in ‘Gin Fest’ themed events at The White House, Newtownabbey and Antrim Castle Gardens.

Belfast Artisan Distillery has won four awards – two silver Gin Master Awards and World Gin Awards and Best Northern Irish London Dry.