Southampton
Southampton is a unitary authority with the official title of city, and it is a district in the English region of South East England, ceremonial county of Hampshire. Southampton had 252,359 inhabitants in 2017. The area is 50 km². In 2018, the city was the third largest port city in the country. London ranked first in terms of tonnage (53.2 million tonnes), followed by Port of Grimsby & Immingham (57.3 million) and Southampton (33.9 million).
Bombay Saphire Distillery. Laverstoke.
The History of Laverstoke Mill
From The Domesday Book To Present Day.
The proud history of Laverstoke Mill is recorded as far back as the 1086 Doomsday Book, in which a mill is noted on the site. Laverstoke Mill has been under the ownership of William the Conqueror, Henry VIII and enjoyed four royal visits, most recently Queen Elizabeth in 1962.
In 1719, having acquired the lease for Laverstoke Mill, printer Henry Portal expanded the site enabling him to begin manufacturing bank notes for the British Empire in 1724.
In the mid-18th century Laverstoke Mill saw increasing prosperity; manufacturing the bank notes during Queen Victoria’s long reign. The site was expanded by the Portal family in 1842, and again in 1881, introducing further elegant architecture to allow for increased production.
Bombay Sapphire’s heritage begins in 1761 when Thomas Dakin purchased a site in Warrington, England, with the intention of distilling gin. In 1831, the Dakin family purchased a still, and adapted it to separate the exotic botanicals from the neutral grain spirit, capturing the flavours of the botanicals in the vapour – an artisanal distillation process now known as Vapour Infusion, and still faithfully used by Bombay Sapphire today.
BREEAM Accreditation at the Bombay Sapphire Distillery.
In building a modern distillery at Laverstoke Mill every reasonable effort has been made to ensure the processes and buildings are as sustainable and efficient as possible. In recognition of this the distillery was awarded the highly prestigious BREEAM Award for Industrial Design in 2014. BREEAM, the world’s leading and most widely used environmental assessment method for buildings, sets the standard for best practice in sustainable design and has become the measurement used to describe a building’s environmental performance. In 2013, Laverstoke Mill became the first distillery and first refurbishment to achieve an ‘Outstanding’ design-stage BREEAM accreditation for its distillery process buildings. These proposals of design-stage sustainability measures have been carried forward into construction and completion.
HMS Spirits Fawley
6 Coleville Ave, Fawley, Southampton SO45 1DA, Verenigd Koninkrijk
Our Story
Like many people, Ben Maguire, founder of HMS Spirits, has always enjoyed a refreshing G&T. But he felt that there was a gap in the market and wanted to create something that combined traditional gin making values with a modern twist.
“There were loads of gins out there, but I wanted something that appealed to people like me. Deep down I’m a bit of a stickler for tradition but as a young entrepreneur, I love trying out new things and seeing where that takes me,” – Ben.
So that’s what he did – he invested in a beautiful 35-litre copper still, during a completely non-related trip to Hungary, shipped it back and installed it in his garage. Over the next few years, he spent every spare moment testing different recipes, blends and botanicals in search of the perfect mix – a gin that respected the art of the London Dry but also delivered a fresh, unexpected twist.
The eureka moment arrived in early 2016 when the blend he was working on hit the spot with him and his friends, who were soon looking to try more. The recipe had been perfected but now he needed everything else, from selecting the right bottles and stoppers to designing labels and settling on a name. This was a labour of love in itself because everything had to look and feel as distinctive as the gin itself tasted.
The name was inspired by Ben’s proximity to the sea and his naval family background. The “HMS fleet” seemed to capture the sentiment perfectly, encompassing integrity and respect for others, together with a real sense of adventure, and a willingness to go out there and take risks.
And so, later in 2016, the HMS Spirits Company was formed. When Mary Rose London Dry Gin arrived on the scene it was like a breath of fresh sea air. The flagship spirit is carefully crafted in small batches, is juniper heavy but perfectly balanced with subtle hints of rosemary and grapefruit, for a distinctively smooth taste.
Word is getting around. The HMS Spirits Fleet has grown and is creating interest, selling fast and is also now winning awards at home and abroad, including LSC Silver 2018, IWSC Outstanding Silver, Outstanding Gin and Tonic Silver 2018 and Double Gold at the China Wine & Spirits Awards 2019 and IWSC Outstanding Silver 2020.
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