Based in a former whisky distillery and paper mill, the Eden Mill story started with a mission to revive the lost art of distilling and brewing in St Andrews. It was Scotland’s first single-site distillery and brewery, producing not just gin, but also whisky and beer.
Eden Mill Gin is created in copper pot-stills and exhibits a wide range of flavours from botanicals sourced from the local area, as well as from much further afield. The Original Gin is Eden Mill’s take on a classic London Dry with a twist.
It is made using Fife’s seabuckthorn berries, a superfood that grows within walking distance of the St Andrews distillery. The unique tart berry flavour is abundant but they carefully balance the gin around it using citrus elements drawn from the other botanicals (like lemon balm and citrus peel). This makes a gin that is on a quite different level to most.
Perhaps that’s why Eden Mill Original Gin was voted Gin of the Year & London Dry of the Year at the 2018 Scottish Gin Awards, competing against 116 other gins by a blind tasting panel.
The team at Eden Mill are constantly innovating, producing a range of gins as well as pre-mixed G&Ts and numerous seasonal expressions.
They are currently in the middle of a site move, so distillery tours are temporarily suspended, but 1-hour tasting sessions are available at the “Gatehouse” site. anew style of distillery tour will be up and running when the move is complete.
The Blendworks experience from Eden Mill allows you to blend your own gin from scratch and take home a few bottles as a keepsake.
Nose: Strong citrus note – lemon peel, bitter orange, light grapefruit. Delicate spice of coriander and clove at the midpoint. Sweet white fruits – pear, lychee, melon at the very end.
Taste: Very clean sweet taste. Very smooth and soft on the tongue. Spices of juniper and green pepper followed by bitter drying berries of cranberry, seabuckthorn. Subtle tastes of white sugar, pear, lychee for a moment that finish with soft sweet orange peel and vanilla. \
Finish: Slight prickle on the back that the tongue of juniper and coriander that moves to a sweet orangery, lychee note. Quickly vanishing leaving you wanting more.
It’s recommended that you serve Eden Mill Original with Pink Grapefruit Tonic with all citrus fruits and peels to garnish. It also works very well served with a Premium Tonic water with a slice of grapefruit to garnish.
A deserving winner of a gin. Eden Mill Original has everything we love about a great citrusy gin, but the added tart kick of the sea buckthorn coupled with the warm earthiness of juniper and coriander sets this gin apart from the rest.
It makes a top-class G&T – we tried the recommended serve with tonic and a slice of grapefruit and the crisp, refreshing flavours really come alive in the mouth.