Yesterday we were lucky enough to be one of the first to sample Adelaide Gin, a brand-new gin from Australian Distilling Co that focuses on capturing the flavours that make Adelaide beautiful and unique.

Adelaide Gin is perfect served neat, with tonic and orange or in a gin based cocktail. We sat and cooled ourselves down at East End Cellars with a refreshing gin and tonic. Adelaide Gin has a floral but savoury taste, making it very easy to drink. The gin is based on Adelaide’s vibrant atmosphere, especially at this time of year during the Fringe and many other exciting summer festivals.

The gin itself was curated by Michael Hickinbotham and Dr. Graham Jones at the University of Adelaide’s Waite Campus. From various trips around the world tasting the best gins and learning the art of gin-making, Michael and Graham are insanely proud of their latest creation. Michael’s family has a rich history in the wine and fortified spirits industry, and says that his passion and drive to make the perfect gin for Adelaide rose from that.

“It’s taken Graham and I the best part of a year to develop and fine-tune the recipe; we wanted it to be perfect. We were able to use the University of Adelaide still at the Waite Campus to bring to life a gin that we both are incredibly proud of.” said Michael.

The true character of Adelaide is captured throughout the gin, right down to the label. This London dry gin is brought to life with the tastes of local and native South Australian botanicals. The flavours of this gin have to be tried to be believed. The copper detailing on the label on the bottle is a direct nod to the Adelaide Settlers and the birth of the city’s foundation.

“The flavours in the gin are floral in nature, built up using a traditional range of spices including cardamom, juniper, oris, coriander, and nutmeg, as well as the beautiful richness of Kangaroo Island lavender,” said Graham, “What makes this gin special is that it was built to a vision; much fun was had in shaping its unique flavour profile!”

Graham had crafted over forty different gin recipes for this gin alone, but was determined to create a gin that properly displays the essences of Adelaide. The true passion and love for Adelaide and of gin is shown in the many flavours of the gin.

To taste Adelaide Gin, pop on over to East End Cellars during the Fringe for a classic gin and tonic or a gin based cocktail. Alternatively, head over to their website to buy some. We absolutely loved Adelaide Gin, thank you so much for letting us be one of the first to try it!

Words by Kitty Barr