When Andy Samuel launched his Shipyard Gin brand in 2021, he drew inspiration from a very personal source.
Like so many others, the former wedding photographer found himself adrift during the Covid lockdowns and casting around for something else to do.
An avid gin fan, and passionate about his home area of Inverclyde, he launched Shipyard Gin in 2021.
“I grew up in the 80s and 90s, watching all the Scottish shipyards close and take the area with it,” Andy told SLTN.
“So I always wanted to do something to celebrate the success and the heritage of the area.”
It was a subject close to Andy’s heart. His grandfather had played an active role in the area’s shipbuilding past, having worked for Scotts Shipbuilding & Engineering.
The original Shipyard Gin, a 44% ABV London Dry gin, is a loving tribute to the west of Scotland, featuring botanicals that include elderflower and gorse as well as citrus fruits including lemon, lime and orange.
And now that original product has been joined by a new fruit-flavoured gin, Hale Moku, which – again – draws inspiration from the Clyde’s proud shipbuilding past.
Andy explained that the new gin is inspired by the Falls of Clyde, a ship built in Port Glasgow and which was then transferred to Honolulu, Hawaii.
“Because of the tie to the local area we thought it would be really nice to do a fusion of Hawaiian flavours and Scottish flavours,” he said.
“It’s the same base recipe, but we swapped out the gorse for fresh pineapple, which gets distilled, and then we add in passion fruit and raspberry flavouring after distillation. It gives a really nice tropical, fruity punch to it.”
The launch has kick-started what’s going to be a busy summer for Andy and Shipyard Gin.
In addition to launching in the US for the first time, the brand will also be hosting its first cocktail competition for Scottish bartenders – challenging them to create an original cocktail using one of the two products.
“The whole goal is to get more traction in the on-trade, and that should hopefully drive the retail side of things as well,” said Andy.
For more information keep an eye on SLTN and shipyard-gin.com.
