The wild wild south west…

On a family holiday to Cornwall, we planned a day hiking the cliff-top meadows of Lantic bay, which I have to say - is bloody lovely! It reminded me of the picturesque bays of Swansea and being a seaside boy, it made me feel at home.

 


Amongst the meandering paths, I had seen a man and his dog down by the rocks foraging; which got me curious, but also wanting to give the dog a big smooch! Yes, The Cocktail Man is a massive dog lover.
 
Upon my hesitant approach, I had asked the man, “what’s going on here?” well, you would not believe it; he was only foraging botanicals for his gin, which he makes here in Cornwall - now I really was home.


 
Alex his name - he had explained to me he was on a mission to explore the wilder side of gin, to which I had mentioned that I’m also on a mission, a mission to allow the people to make world-class cocktails at home – I’m The Cocktail Man, I said.
 
His eyes lit up, he said, “come with me, let me show you the nine botanicals we use within our aromatic gin - and better still, let me take you to the Skylark Distillery; which is named after a bird whose song is the soundtrack to many foraging expeditions – fab song!”


 
Upon entering the small artisan distillery, he showed me a batch in progress, using the finest Cornish spring water - which makes the gin so pure. He politely grabbed me a glass, and cracked open a fresh bottle, “how does The Cocktail Man drink his gin?” He said. “Straight”, I said, “so I can enjoy every element of the fine liquid that is gin”.
 
After the first sip, I knew I had stumbled across something unique, what’s the chances of that? I knew that this had to be shared with others, so I asked Alex If I could feature his gin in one of our cocktail kits, to which he happily accepted.


 
What was meant to be a family day out, turned into a day of discovery, the day I discovered Lantic Gin, a gin as lush as the place it comes from, Cornwall.
 
 
Love,
 
The Cocktail Man x