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Arbikie Highland Estate launches second gin

Scottish farm distillery Arbikie Highland Estate has released its second gin expression, AK’s Gin, which is made using single estate wheat.

AK’s Gin is made using single estate wheat

A permanent addition to Arbikie’s range, AK’s Gin is named after Alexander Kirkwood Stirling, the father of Arbikie owners Iain, John and David. It is distilled from Viscount wheat grown in the Deils Knapp field on the 200-acre Arbikie Highland Estate.

This marks the first time Arbikie has used wheat as the base to create gin, having launched Kirsty’s Gin using estate-grown potatoes in 2015. Arbikie first used wheat to create one of products with the launch of Arbikie Strawberry Vodka last November.

“We chose our Viscount variety of wheat because it gave us a beautiful, buttery character,” said distillery manager Christian Perez. “Coupled with our fresh honey, AK’s Gin is incredibly smooth lending itself to a great gin and tonic and an amazing base spirit for cocktails.”

The gin’s botanicals include: juniper, black pepper, mace, cardamom and fresh honey, which are currently sourced off-site.

Arbikie plans to install beehives on its farm to create single estate honey for AK’s Gin, which the producer claims will aid its crop growth through bee pollination.

Arbikie also plans to combat declining juniper populations in Scotland by growing its own supply of the plant and “eventually” using estate-grown juniper in all future gin production.

John Stirling, director of Arbikie, said of AK’s Gin: “Our Dad is an inspiration to us and we wanted to create a gin that reflected his character and our family’s farming roots. He’s farmed all his life and is proud that we are distilling using our family’s own crops and is keen that we share that unique provenance with our Arbikie customers on-going.”

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