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Jawbox Gin engages drinkers with ginger serve

11 December 2024 By Miona Madsen

Kirker Greer Spirits’ Jawbox has launched a ginger serve initiative to attract new gin drinkers.

Jawbox & Ginger Christmas Serve — The Original Gin and Ginger serve is a part of Jawbox Gin’s wider ‘Made Here, Made of Here’ campaign

Jawbox The Original Gin and Ginger cocktail is described as ‘an appealing alternative’ to the classic gin and tonic for those who dislike the taste of quinine in tonic.

Served in a distinctive Jawbox mug, the simple mixed drink celebrates and honours Belfast, home to the original gin and ginger – created in the 1850s by an Irish surgeon and pharmacist, Thomas Joseph Cantrell.

According to Irish brand Jawbox, the light spice of ginger ale complements the 11 botanicals used to distil the gin.

The earthenware branded mug was inspired by the pottery and enamel of the era. The mug is also a nod to ‘Jawbox’, the nickname for the enduringly popular Belfast kitchen sinks first made in the city in the late 17th century – a place where people came together and stories were told.

Ali Pickering, chief marketing officer at Drinksology Kirker Greer, said: “In a category often characterised by more pastoral and elegant cues, our Jawbox Original Gin and Ginger Serve drives interest and engagement through a distinctive Belfast provenance story while also reinforcing Jawbox’s authentic and industrial feel.

“Our insights tell us that consumers are looking for an authentic story full of strength, character, and a sense of place. They’re willing to pay more for quality and believe that provenance is hugely important to them. This distinctive Belfast serve with an industrial-era feel really grabs attention and has the potential to open up the category to a new wave of consumers who previously thought they didn’t like gin due to the quinine in tonic.”

The serve initiative is being rolled out across selected bars and wholesalers in the UK and Ireland, backed by table-top point-of-sale (POS), neck tags in the off-trade, social media, influencer promotions, and key activations in Belfast city.

In addition, selected bars and on-trade outlets in the UK and Ireland will receive a Gin and Ginger serve kit, which includes the distinctive Jaxbox mugs, alongside POS and premium rustic holders to support and promote the serve.

The Original Gin and Ginger serve is a part of Jawbox Gin’s wider ‘Made Here, Made of Here’ campaign celebrating the brand’s birthplace of Belfast.

The broader campaign includes a Jawbox Gin pop-up bar in the lobby of the Fitzwilliam Hotel, various window displays, and the Belfast sinks at the Duke of York, which are now branded Jawbox.

Earlier this year, SB interviewed Drinksology Kirker Greer’s chief commercial and strategy officer, Ryan McFarland, who joined last year, to learn more about the company.