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You may never get that coveted invite to a garden party at Buckingham Palace, but we’ve found the next best thing. While many of us have been getting entrepreneurial during lockdown, tie-dyeing T-shirts, baking blondies and contemplating selling vital organs to pay rent, it seems Her Maj has also become a multi-hyphenate. As well as longest-reigning British monarch, Defender of the Faith and head of the Commonwealth, Liz can now add gin connoisseur to her regal resume.
This week the Royal Collection Trust has unveiled a premium ‘small-batch dry gin’ infused with 12 botanicals hand-picked from the Buckingham Palace garden. The 42 percent ABV gin is said to suggest citrus and herbal notes thanks to lemon verbena, hawthorn berries, bay leaves and mulberry leaves. And will set you back £40 for a 70cl bottle – not too bad for a taste of how the other half lives.
It's long been known the monarch is a fan of a gin two. Although, according to her former chef Darren McGrady, her favourite way to drink it is in a posh cocktail with Dubonnet (Kate’s a Guinness gal, Meghan’s all about the vino and Harry champions an old-fashioned pint, in case you were wondering.)
All profits from Buckingham Palace Gin will go towards maintaining the large collection of over 1 million artefacts, from clothing and jewellery to portraits and furniture, overseen by the Royal Collection Trust. Items will be available to view again from July 23, when royal residences, including Windsor Castle and the Palace of Holyroodhouse, reopen to the public.
Next on the agenda: Sussex Sherry? Anne’s Absinthe? The possibilities are endless. So drink up to help out. It’s for Queen and country, after all.
Fancy something more fruity? This London distillery has created a DIY piña colada kit.