Sipsmith is a

microdistillery A microdistillery is a small, often boutique-style distillery established to produce beverage grade spirit alcohol in relatively small quantities, usually done in single batches (as opposed to larger distillers' continuous distilling process). W ...

located in

London London is the capital and largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary down to the North Sea, and has been a majo ...

. It is the first copper-pot

distillery Distillation, or classical distillation, is the process of separating the components or substances from a liquid mixture by using selective boiling and condensation, usually inside an apparatus known as a still. Dry distillation is the heati ...

to open within Greater London' in nearly two centuries. It has been a subsidiary of

Beam Suntory Beam Suntory, Inc. is an American-founded, Japanese multinational company that produces alcoholic beverages. It is a subsidiary of Suntory, based in Osaka, Japan. It is the third largest producer of distilled beverages worldwide, behind Diageo ...

since December 2016. The Sipsmith Gin distillery is one of 24 in London, the others are: Beefeater Gin,

Sacred Microdistillery Sacred Spirits (previously known as Sacred Microdistillery) is a microdistillery in Highgate, London. It distills its spirits under a vacuum in glassware, and thus at a lower temperature than traditional pot stills, which operate at atmospheric ...

The London Distillery Company The London Distillery Company, also known as TLDC, was a distillery based in Bermondsey, London. Originally located in Battersea TLDC produced English whisky, Rye whisky, London gin and British spirits, compounds and cordials. TLDC also created e ...

, Doghouse Distillery, Old Bakery Gin, Bimber Distillery, Boxer Gin, Portobello Star, Graveney Gin, Four Thieves, Thames Distillers, Half Hitch Gin, Highwayman Gin, 58 Gin, East London Liquor Company, City of London Distillery, Bermondsey Distillery (Jensens Gin), Bump Caves Distillery (The Draft House), Kingston Distillers (Beckett's Gin), Portobello Road Gin, Butler's Gin, Little Bird Gin, and Hayman's.

History

Sipsmith was established in London in 2009. The first copper-pot based distillery to start up in London in 189 years, it is one of only four gin distilleries located in London. The Beefeater Gin Distillery (established by the John Burrough's Company in 1863), Thames Distillers,

and Sipsmith are the only remaining licensed distilleries in the nation's capital. Sipsmith was launched by Sam Galsworthy and Fairfax Hall, respectively former Fuller's and

Diageo Diageo plc () is a Multinational corporation, multinational alcoholic beverage company, with its headquarters in London, England. It operates from 132 sites around the world. It was the world's largest distiller before being overtaken by Kweich ...

employees and Jared Brown, who is also Sipsmith's Master Distiller. A drinks and spirits historian and publisher, he has developed spirits in Sweden, Norway, Vietnam, and in the US over the past 12 years. The Sipsmith still was designed and produced by the German still manufacturers Christian Carl. Named "Prudence", this copper pot still has a capacity of . Prudence is the subject of their iconic swan neck copper still labelling, created alongside their visual identity and brand by

Perry Haydn Taylor Perry Haydn Taylor (born 1966) is an English creative director, designer and entrepreneur, who lives in Somerset and works in London. He is the founder and "chief stoker" of Big Fish Design, a brand, design and marketing consultancy. Career Hayd ...

's agency, big fish, before Sipsmith was started. On 16 December 2016 it was announced that

had taken a controlling stake in Sipsmith for an undisclosed sum, but that Sam Galsworthy, Fairfax Hall and Jared Brown would be staying on to lead the distillery. In December 2016, Sipsmith was acquired by Japanese

, a subsidiary of Suntory Beverage & Food Ltd, for £50 million. In May 2017, Sipsmith partnered with the secret London culinary boutique Gingerline to create an «immersive gin dinner».

Activities

The Sipsmith distillery is situated on a residential street in West London on the site of a former microbrewery, later the offices of beer hunter

Michael Jackson Michael Joseph Jackson (August 29, 1958 – June 25, 2009) was an American singer, songwriter, dancer, and philanthropist. Dubbed the "King of Pop", he is regarded as one of the most significant cultural figures of the 20th century. Over a ...

. Sipsmith's first two spirits are a Barley

Vodka Vodka ( pl, wódka , russian: водка , sv, vodka ) is a clear distilled alcoholic beverage. Different varieties originated in Poland, Russia, and Sweden. Vodka is composed mainly of water and ethanol but sometimes with traces of impuritie ...

and a

London Dry Gin Gin () is a distilled alcoholic drink that derives its flavour from juniper berries (''Juniperus communis''). Gin originated as a medicinal liquor made by monks and alchemists across Europe, particularly in southern Italy, Flanders and the Ne ...

. These are produced in small batches of fewer than 300 bottles, from an English Barley mash that is created off-site. Each batch is made in a traditional manner with three cuts: the Head or foreshot is discarded; the Heart or core of the distillation run is retained; and the Tail or feints is discarded. The Heart of the distillation is diluted to its final bottling strength with Lydwell Spring water, one of the sources of the

River Thames The River Thames ( ), known alternatively in parts as the The Isis, River Isis, is a river that flows through southern England including London. At , it is the longest river entirely in England and the Longest rivers of the United Kingdom, se ...

in the

Cotswolds The Cotswolds (, ) is a region in central-southwest England, along a range of rolling hills that rise from the meadows of the upper Thames to an escarpment above the Severn Valley and Evesham Vale. The area is defined by the bedrock of Jur ...

Products

*Sipsmith London Dry Gin (41.6% ABV): A classic London dry style gin, it uses 10 botanicals in its maceration:

Juniper Junipers are coniferous trees and shrubs in the genus ''Juniperus'' () of the cypress family Cupressaceae. Depending on the taxonomy, between 50 and 67 species of junipers are widely distributed throughout the Northern Hemisphere, from the Arcti ...

berries,

Coriander Coriander (;

Seed,

Angelica ''Angelica'' is a genus of about 60 species of tall biennial and perennial herbs in the family Apiaceae, native to temperate and subarctic regions of the Northern Hemisphere, reaching as far north as Iceland, Lapland, and Greenland. They grow t ...

Root,

Liquorice Liquorice (British English) or licorice (American English) ( ; also ) is the common name of ''Glycyrrhiza glabra'', a flowering plant of the bean family Fabaceae, from the root of which a sweet, aromatic flavouring can be extracted. The liqu ...

Root,

Orris Root Orris root (''rhizoma iridis'') is the root of ''Iris germanica'' and ''Iris pallida''. It had the common name of Queen Elizabeth Root. Constituent chemicals The most valued component of orris root is oil of orris (0.1–0.2%), a yellow-whit ...

, Ground

Almond The almond (''Prunus amygdalus'', syn. ''Prunus dulcis'') is a species of tree native to Iran and surrounding countries, including the Levant. The almond is also the name of the edible and widely cultivated seed of this tree. Within the genus ...

Cassia Bark ''Cinnamomum cassia'', called Chinese cassia or Chinese cinnamon, is an evergreen tree originating in southern China, and widely cultivated there and elsewhere in South and Southeast Asia (India, Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, Thailand, and Vietnam) ...

Cinnamon Cinnamon is a spice obtained from the inner bark of several tree species from the genus ''Cinnamomum''. Cinnamon is used mainly as an aromatic condiment and flavouring additive in a wide variety of cuisines, sweet and savoury dishes, breakfa ...

Orange Orange most often refers to: *Orange (fruit), the fruit of the tree species '' Citrus'' × ''sinensis'' ** Orange blossom, its fragrant flower *Orange (colour), from the color of an orange, occurs between red and yellow in the visible spectrum * ...

Peel and

Lemon The lemon (''Citrus limon'') is a species of small evergreen trees in the flowering plant family Rutaceae, native to Asia, primarily Northeast India (Assam), Northern Myanmar or China. The tree's ellipsoidal yellow fruit is used for culin ...

Peel. *Sipsmith Sipping Vodka (40% ABV): An unfiltered and unsweetened wheat vodka, the spirit derives its flavour from its essential grain base. *Sipsmith Sloe Gin (29% ABV): released in October 2010 *Sipsmith London Cup (29% ABV): a type of

fruit cups In botany, a fruit is the seed-bearing structure in flowering plants that is formed from the ovary after flowering. Fruits are the means by which flowering plants (also known as angiosperms) disseminate their seeds. Edible fruits in particul ...

with

Lemon Verbena ''Aloysia citrodora'', lemon verbena, is a species of flowering plant in the verbena family Verbenaceae, native to South America. Other common names include lemon beebrush. It was brought to Europe by the Spanish and the Portuguese in the 17th ce ...

Rose A rose is either a woody perennial flowering plant of the genus ''Rosa'' (), in the family Rosaceae (), or the flower it bears. There are over three hundred species and tens of thousands of cultivars. They form a group of plants that can be ...

petals,

Borage Borage ( or ; ''Borago officinalis''), also known as starflower, is an annual herb in the flowering plant family Boraginaceae. It is native to the Mediterranean region, and has naturalized in many other locales. It grows satisfactorily in gard ...

and

Earl grey Earl Grey is a title in the peerage of the United Kingdom. It was created in 1806 for General Charles Grey, 1st Baron Grey. In 1801, he was given the title Baron Grey of Howick in the County of Northumberland, and in 1806 he was created Viscou ...

released in August 2011 *Sipsmith Damson Vodka (28% ABV): released in 2010 *Sipsmith VJOP (57.7% ABV): 'Very Junipery Over Proof' *Sipsmith Lemon Drizzle with fresh vapour infused

peels and

*Sipsmith zesty Orange distilled with Bergamot and infused with fresh

peel *Sipsmith Orange and Cacao is infused with

peel and

Cocoa Cocoa may refer to: Chocolate * Chocolate * ''Theobroma cacao'', the cocoa tree * Cocoa bean, seed of ''Theobroma cacao'' * Chocolate liquor, or cocoa liquor, pure, liquid chocolate extracted from the cocoa bean, including both cocoa butter and ...

bean *Sipsmith Chili and Lime gin with fresh

Lime Lime commonly refers to: * Lime (fruit), a green citrus fruit * Lime (material), inorganic materials containing calcium, usually calcium oxide or calcium hydroxide * Lime (color), a color between yellow and green Lime may also refer to: Botany ...

and 7 Chili varieties *Sipsmith Strawberry smash distillet with mint and Strawberrys In 2015, to commemorate the 100th anniversary of the Singapore Sling, Sipsmith partnered with

Raffles Hotels & Resorts Raffles Hotels & Resorts is a chain of luxury hotels which traces its roots to 1887 with the opening of the original Raffles Hotel in Singapore. The company started to develop internationally in the late 1990s. From 2015, Raffles is part of Accor. ...

to create a brand-made gin, the Raffles 1915 Gin.

Awards

The distillery won the 2010

Observer Food Monthly ''The Observer'' is a British newspaper published on Sundays. It is a sister paper to ''The Guardian'' and ''The Guardian Weekly'', whose parent company Guardian Media Group Limited acquired it in 1993. First published in 1791, it is the w ...

Award for Best Newcomer.

References

External links

Sipsmith - Independent SpiritsBeam Suntory
{{Gin distilleries in the United Kingdom Gins Distilleries in England Drink companies based in London Manufacturing companies based in London 2009 establishments in England British companies established in 2009 Beam Suntory Microdistilleries Food and drink companies established in 2009