Gordon Quinn talks all things juniper with our intrepid reporter.

JM: (interviewer): how would you summarise 2019 for The Badachro Distillery?

GQ: (Gordon Quinn – Distiller): It has been an exciting year. We introduced our Gairloch Coastal Gin, which has proved to be very popular and in demand. It seems to complement our gin offering perfectly. This year we also launched our first Distillery Experience in the summer season. Very small groups of visitors get to know our work in the intimate surroundings of Aird Hill. It proved successful beyond our dreams and we will expand and grow our offering in the season this year. Last, but not least our very limited-edition Spiced Winter Gin was sold out in days. If you missed out this time, keep your eyes open for more limited-edition gins coming this year.

JM: A new year and a new decade. What lies in store for the swinging twenties?

GQ: We are really excited with the growth of our range of Scottish Highland Gins, and we will shortly have news of expansion which we believe will be good news for lovers of Badachro Gin and visitors to our corner of the Scottish Highlands too!

JM: How do you feel about the flood of trendy gins to the market over the last year?

GQ: At the moment there seems to be no end of novelty gins hitting the market. We do not see these as a threat to our product or brand. I think that flavoured spirits will come and go, but the really terrific range of high quality, Scottish gins, inspired by and featuring locally gathered, organic botanicals and flavours will stand the test of time. We are confident that our gins will continue to grow in popularity and our loyal customers will continue to prefer the provenance of our products over the fantasies of the big producers’ marketing departments.

JM: So the future bodes well?

GQ: Our audience is very discerning when it comes to their gin. They know what they like and why they prefer our gins to mass produced spirits. There is narrative in the industry that gin is on the crest of a wave that will soon ebb away, to be replaced by that old favourite vodka or perhaps rum. However, Smirnoff Red was still the top selling spirit in the UK last year.*

We see it differently. Badachro Gin is not in competition with big brands, but is part of a movement for authentic and diverse tastes, making gins that are redolent of the tastes and smells of the Highlands of Scotland.

GQ: We will continue to produce small-batched, artisan gins of the highest quality, fulfilling a growing demand for high quality, distinct and hand crafted gins. On top of our three flagship gins we will continue to produce one-off, seasonal gins using botanticals and spiced ingredients to give our customers something unique and very special.

We would like to say a big thank you to all our wonderful customers, visitors and supporters as we head into 2020 with much excitement and anticipation for another good year. Slàinte Mhath!

* According to industry publication The Morning Advertiser (opens in a new tab).