Back in September, Highclere Castle, best known as the setting of "Downton Abbey," debuted a house gin infused with botanicals from the castle's herb garden. The Countess of Carnarvon's gin is beautiful, to be sure, but the Windsors were not to be shown up.
As such, Buckingham Palace announced a new addition to their Royal Collection Trust: Buckingham Palace Gin. The spirit is a London dry gin made with citrus and herbs from 12 different botanicals sourced from their own garden, including "lemon verbena, hawthorn berries, bay leaves and mulberry leaves," according to a statement obtained by Bustle.
Proceeds from sales of Buckingham Palace Gin will be funding the Royal Collection Trust's charity, which keeps 15 royal residences and their exhibited items open to the public for all to enjoy without any public funding.
Signature gin seems to be all the rage these days, but we all know who started the trend. Ryan Reynolds' Aviation Gin has been his fourth baby since he acquired stake in the brand in 2018. So, he made sure to appropriately troll the palace as they started taking pre-orders for their spirit.
Want to make gin from your own garden like the Queen? Easier than it sounds, actually.
Gin is basically just vodka infused with some botanicals, like juniper berries, cardamom pods, coriander seeds and various fruits and spices. These two spirits begin the same way, but gin is super flexible, so you can use a lot of different ingredients to create a flavor profile you're proud of. The process, when you break it down, is pretty simple.
- Gather up some herbs, fruit and spices that complement each other and grind them up in a food processor.
- Soak them in neutral-grain vodka for a week. Mix the concoction well once a day.
- Strain the liquor so it's free of all the herbs and such.
- Run your now gin through some kind of filter (Brita pitchers work!) a few times over to clear the spirit of any leftover sediment.
- Store in a cool, dark place and retrieve when happy hour hits!