Gin and eaux-de-vie distillery opens in Cotswolds

A new distillery has opened in the Cotswolds, UK, producing a gin containing 34 different botanicals and a variety of eaux-de-vie.

Photographer Barney Wilczak has opened Capreoulus Distillery in the Cotswolds

Founded by professional photographer Barney Wilczak in the house where he grew up, Capreoulus Distillery produces Garden Tiger Dry Gin and seven varieties of eau de vie.

Described as the “UK’s moist complex gin”, Garden Tiger Dry Gin contains botanicals such as blood orange zest and lime tree leaves, and uses a base spirit made from British wheat.

Capreoulus Distillery also produces a version of Garden Tiger Gin aged in mulberry wood that previously contained its single variety Harry Masters Jersey Apple Eau de Vie.

Other types of eau de vie made by the distillery include elderberry, blood orange and plum, some with locally grown fruit.

Wilczak, who is also distiller at Capreoulus, focused on conservation issues during his career as a photographer.

“Years of focusing on eau de vie (fruit brandies) have led our distiller, Barney Wilczak, to create a wide range of expressions, many unique to our shores, others worldwide,” the company said.

“From blood orange to elderberry (35kg of berries are needed to produce one-litre), and a single rare perry pear tree from a remote Cotswold valley to a mulberry barrel aged apple eau de vie. Each bottle is a carefully crafted expression of terroir, capturing the peak of ripeness.”

The Cotswolds Distillery opened in Stourton near Chipping Norton in 2014, raising more than £1 million through crowdfunding platform Crowdbnk earlier this year.