Hayman Distillers, the longest serving Gin Distilling family in Engl&, bring to you Hayman's 1850 Reserve Gin
- distilled to a recipe from the 1850s, which is then cask rested for 3 to 4 weeks following the tradition of Gin Palace style Gin. In the mid 1800s, drinking establishments known as Gin Palaces were commonplace on almost every street corner in London. The first was most likely that of Fearon's, in Holborn Hill around 1830. During this era, Gin Palaces changed Gin from being something that people used to drink themselves into oblivion with to becoming more of a refined social activity. Before 1861, Gin was sold in barrels rather than in a bottle. Although Gin has never had an age statement
- once distilled, Gin was stored, transported & served from barrels into jugs & smaller casks. In 1861, the then Chancellor of the Exchequer, William Gladstone, introduced the Single Bottle Act which allowed spirits to be sold in bottles. Following distillation, Hayman's 1850 Reserve Gin is rested in Scotch Whisky barrels for 3 to 4 weeks which add subtle mellow notes to the hints of spice & pepper from the Juniper & Coriander dominant Gin recipe resulting in an aromatic & full-bodied Gin. It is distilled in small batches of 5000 bottles, & each bottle is then individually numbered alongside the batch no. James Hayman commented ' We have been researching the relationship between Gin & wood for some time. The most important aspect about Gin is that its flavour is from botanicals & that it has never had an age statement. Therefore it was essential that the wood did not dominate the Gin & the final product had to be credible to Gin. It also fits in extremely well with the period before the 1861 single bottle act when wood was used to store, transport & serve Gin from.'