Buckingham Palace gin goes on sale with ingredients from the Queen’s garden
Written by News on 13/07/2020
An official Buckingham Palace gin has gone on sale, made from ingredients handpicked from the Queen’s garden.
The monarch is a fan of a gin cocktail, with her favourite tipple said to be gin and Dubonnet. The drink is made with one part gin and two parts of the sweet, fortified wine-based aperitif, ice cubes and a slice of lemon, which she is said to enjoy immediately before lunch.
The Royal Collection Trust has launched its “small-batch dry gin” online, as it says its shops are currently closed due to the coronavirus pandemic.
The drink will also be served at future official events at Buckingham Palace.
The Royal Mews at the palace, Windsor Castle, the Palace of Holyroodhouse, and the Queen’s Galleries in London and Edinburgh are due to reopen to the public on 23 July.
Infused with citrus and herbal notes, the gin is derived from 12 botanicals, several of which are collected from the Buckingham Palace garden, including lemon verbena, hawthorn berries, bay leaves and mulberry leaves.
On its website, the charity described the gin as “the perfect summer thirst-quencher”, and explained how best to serve it.
A post read: “The recommended serving method is to pour a measure of the gin into an ice-filled short tumbler before topping up with tonic and garnishing with a slice of lemon.”
The clear and turquoise glass bottle features a coronet and a ring of flowers entwined in an elaborate gold decorative circle, and has a gold-coloured stopper. On the back is a sketch of Buckingham Palace.
The gin costs £40 for a 70cl bottle, with all profits going to the Royal Collection Trust, which maintains and displays the large collection of royal artefacts, from artwork to furniture, held in trust by the Queen for her heirs and the nation.
The Trust is said to be facing financial difficulties amid the “greatest challenge” in its history.
It is seeking voluntary redundancies among its 650 staff, and has taken out a £22m loan after predicting losses of £30m over the next year because of the closure of its sites during the COVID-19 pandemic.
(c) Sky News 2020: Buckingham Palace gin goes on sale with ingredients from the Queen’s garden
