Celebrating The Artisan Food & Drink Producers Of Lancashire: Ribble Valley Gin Co.

Lancashire is home to many artisan food and drink producers – all of whom have faced individual difficulties due to the coronavirus pandemic and the lockdown.

As life slowly returns to something resembling normal, the public are once again looking forward to enjoying summer as it’s meant to be and how better to do so than accompanied by friends, enjoying some alfresco dining twinned with some small batch artisan gin, distilled and produced in the Ribble Valley.

Ribble Valley Gin Co was founded in 2018; the brainchild of Justine and Luke – both self-confessed avid craft gin fans. They wanted to contribute to the vibrant food and drink culture of the Ribble Valley, whilst also bringing something unique to the gin market. So, after much research, development and, of course, taste testing; they launched their signature gin Little Lane from the distillery in Longridge, Lancashire in February 2019.

The company is run wholly by Justine and Luke, distilling, bottling and labelling approx. 50 bottles of gin per batch, using spring water from a private estate in the Trough of Bowland and the finest natural botanicals. They even do their own delivery!

The past few years has seen a huge resurgence in the popularity of gin as a drink of choice – a result of which has been the establishment of many artisan brands, each with its own back story and unique flavour combinations.
The flavouring of gin comes from use of hundreds of natural botanicals, carefully combined in a vapour infusion process. Justine and Luke use an 83-litre column still; alcohol is heated, and as it evaporates, vapour passes through the suspended botanicals to acquire the flavour. It then moves into a condenser, cooled by a copper coil, from which the crafted gin emerges for bottling.

There is an art to the combination of botanicals to use, but there is no defined ‘rule book’ on what should or should not be combined. It takes a great deal of time and testing to produce the correct balance, however earthy, floral, sweet, spicy, citrus and savoury flavours can all work well together once the balance is achieved.

Gin can’t legally be gin, however, without the use of juniper. Originally a main ingredient, thought to cure a number of ailments such as stomach pain and (yes!) liver damage, gin was produced as a medical treatment and over time, as gin became a drink, rather than a remedy, juniper remained a traditional ingredient before its use passed into law as a necessity.

Other core botanicals, such as coriander, are used; their quantity varied to accommodate the introduction of other flavours to the process. Pink gin – a relatively new craze, can be created using food colouring. However, at Ribble Valley Gin Co, they infuse distilled gin with strawberries for 48 hours before bottling to create the pink blush colouring of their Garden Party summer gin.

Ribble Valley Gin Co’s signature gin, Little Lane, was inspired by the beauty of the British countryside; its name evocative of a quiet, country lane where a walker is accompanied by the delicate buzzing of bees in the hedgerows. The flavour too derives its profile from the hedgerow – combining elements of nettles, heather blackberry and chamomile, followed by earthy oak, angelica root and hawthorn, suggestive of ancient cooling woodlands and all accompanied with a subtle citrus undertone derived from lime leaves.

The labels are beautifully crafted with the help of Laura Brown, the artist and illustrator behind Shed on the Fell (www.shedonthefell.com). Laura provides the illustrations of each botanical and Justine and Luke then use a local designer to realise their vision in a bespoke design for each label.

Lockdown has presented problems with stockists and wholesale customers closing for business, and of course the cancellation of country shows, fairs, trade shows and farmers markets – which is where Justine and Luke can usually be found most weekends and all through the summer months.

Their gin can be found at local restaurants and pubs – soon to reopen – but can also be bought direct from the website www.ribblevalleygin.co.uk where you can also view a list of their regular stockists. Gift hampers have been popular during lockdown and regular special offers can be found via their social media platforms:

https://www.facebook.com/ribblevalleyginco/ on Twitter: @ribblevalleygin and on Instagram.

Gin has long-since left behind its reputation as “Mothers’ Ruin”, it has progressed from its staple role in twentieth century cocktails or being served with just “ice and a slice.” Now firmly re-established as a quintessentially British drink – do make sure a bottle of something special from Ribble Valley Gin Co accompanies your picnic this week during #NationalPicnicWeek