A NEW hand-crafted, artisan gin from Scotland, described as “one of the
finest available”, is rapidly making a name for itself in the UK, with listings
at several key airports including London Heathrow.
House of Elrick – the creation of owner and founder Stuart Ingram - struck a chord with World Duty Free when it
was first launched late last year and was listed at Scottish regional airports including
Edinburgh, Glasgow, Inverness and Aberdeen this August, subsequently going live
at Heathrow Terminal 5 on October 1. Ingram is now looking to take House of Elrick
to travel retail markets in Europe and beyond.
“Initial results at T5 are very
encouraging and in Scotland we’re selling over 80 bottles a week with sales
increasing all the time,” says Ingram. “With domestic distribution for
House of Elrick now building outside the UK, including Denmark, Holland and Italy, along with interest from Russia and Sweden, we believe the time is right to take the
brand into the wider global travel retail arena.”
The only spirit made with the freshest water from Loch Ness, House of
Elrick gin uses hand-picked botanicals that complement juniper, coriander
seeds, angelica root and citurs peel, built around a core of heather, pink
peppercorns, sweet fennel and rose petals. Refreshing and aromatic the taste
profile is a fresh, yet earthy, bold infusion of flavours.
Initially available
to travel retail in 700ml sizes the
stand out packaging is a luxurious ‘Little Pasha’ bottle design with stopper
cork sprayed in a matt blue finish and screen printed with silver ink to
communicate a unique and distinctive appeal.
Every craft gin has a brand story and House of Elrick is no exception.
The gin is named after the House of the same name, constructed at the height of
the Scottish Enlightenment period in 1720, as the home to an entrepreneurial
family of cattle farmers and millers. Well-travelled and curious, members of
the household often visited Florence in Italy, a country already swept by
European Enlightenment thinking, returning with tales of new science
and philosophical learnings that echoed the writings of many of the
leading Scottish Enlightened thinkers of the time.
On return to the estate the family sought to host company that would
continue the philosophical, scientific and creative discussion of the
time, encouraging the expansion of free-thinking over blind faith and thus
saw a number of creative and maverick individuals pass through their doors. Later
the house was to be visited by Bonnie Prince Charlie who gifted the Jacobite
rose to the estate, subsequently gifted by the previous owner of the
estate to King Edward at Balmoral Castle. It can now be found growing in the
beautiful walled garden at the heart of the grounds. The monarch link
remains strong with Ingram sending a bottle to Queen Elizabeth 11 at Christmas
last year, for which he received a thank you note.
Having been in his
family for 60 years, Ingram submitted plans to redevelop this historic estate
as a gin-making facility and destination restaurant back in 2015. While
currently made in Surrey, work has now started on the onsite distillery, due to
open at the turn of the year.
Ingram stresses that
the quality of House of Elrick puts this craft gin in a class of its own.
“Quality over quantity is key,” he says. “ Our liquid is distilled by hand
in batches of 600 bottles per run, which means we can maintain control over
every bottle that leaves our distillery. Working with independent farmers and
suppliers to craft a liquid of absolute premium quality, the final liquid
speaks for itself.”
The packaging is
designed to further speak volumes about quality. “Irrespective of whether you are a large or
small producer, there should be no compromise on creating the maximum shelf
impact,” continues Ingram. “We’re confident we’ve done that for House of
Elrick, creating an end product that sits in the premium sector so in demand by
the travel retail channel. Craft gin is highly competitive, but the quality of
House of Elrick gin enables it to sit alongside all other existing premium
brands as an international player in its own right.”
House of Elrick gin is the first in a series of branded spirits
and goods that will bear the estate’s name. “We have already
launched our own registered Tartan, with gents and ladies scarves, ties,
cushions etc, now available. And we have plenty more ideas to come – so watch
this space,” Ingram promises.
In order to build
its travel retail business, House of Elrick is keen to create partnerships with
specialist distributors within the channel.
