What is a Scottish Gin?

An honest view from The Gin Cooperative.

Published: 19th February 2018

We’ve met and spoken with many Scottish Gin producers who love what they do, have invested financially and emotionally and put a lot at risk, including their livelihoods and the roof over their heads, to take up gin making. As the new kids on the block in the Scottish Gin community, we’ve spoken with several Scottish Gin makers and the same issue is raised every time – provenance. That’s why we must be clear about which Scottish Gins will feature on The Gin Cooperative A-Z of Scottish Gin and why some brands will be eligible to be part of The Gin Cooperative membership.

Scotland’s association and reputation for producing world class food and drink is well known and the value for any business or brand being part of Scotland’s food and drink portfolio will bring many commercial benefits. As a country Scotland produces a range of produce from beef and salmon to whisky and of course gin and a whole lot more. Scottish Gin as a brand and a product sits comfortably in the portfolio of produce originating from Scotland and will greatly benefit when marketed and promoted as a premium spirit produced in Scotland with care and skill. However currently the term Scottish Gin has no informal or formal protection of what makes a gin a Scottish Gin. Without protecting the term Scottish Gin means that anyone can produce a gin anywhere in the world and brand it as a Scottish Gin and product of Scotland.

For us as a business and gin consumers this is both morally and commercially wrong. It leaves the door open for eroding the confidence of consumers, the on-trade and off-trade. If the term Scottish Gin isn’t defined and protected we believe this was lead to seriously harming the long term growth, reputation and success of Scottish Gin as an internationally recognisable drinks category. It’s why from day one we’ve set out our ambitions for the Scottish Gin category and why we will be seeking to work with and support the businesses and brands we view as being part of the genuine Scottish Gin category.

Scottish Gin must be made in Scotland

We believe that to claim the title of ‘Scottish Gin’, that gin must have been distilled or cold compounded here in Scotland. For The Gin Cooperative, this clear and straightforward approach to the term ‘Scottish Gin’ is based on the geographical location of production. We see this approach as vital to protecting the integrity and identity of Scottish Gin, as well as playing a role in nurturing and protecting genuine Scottish Gin makers and their gins. As a business established to promote and showcase the Scottish Gin category and Scottish Gin consumers, we want consumers to have complete confidence that if they buy a gin branded and marketed as a Scottish Gin or see a Scottish Gin on our website or social media channels that the Scottish Gin featured has been produced in Scotland. Protecting the term Scottish Gin will help create and protect jobs, protect brand owners and producers and build trust in the term Scottish Gin in the long term.

Sourcing botanicals and base spirit

We understand and appreciate that most Scottish Gins use botanicals and a base alcohol sourced from outside of Scotland. With several commercial botanical merchants and the complications of growing botanicals in Scotland that require a warm climate, commercially, it makes perfect sense to work with third parties who can provide consistent quality botanicals. The same principles apply to sourcing a base spirit with several suppliers who can provide quality GNS for use in gin production, with many producers taking this approach due to the time and costs of creating a base spirit from scratch; for many, it simply isn’t an option. Several Scottish Gins also exclusively use Scottish grown or foraged botanicals, with some combining locally foraged botanicals with botanicals from outside of Scotland.

We will support Scottish Gin makers who produce or source their ingredients, including base spirit, outside of Scotland. We will also support Scottish Gin makers who source a base spirit outside Scotland for cold compounding. The term Scottish Gin is a term that will add value to any brand or gin; however, what makes a gin a Scottish Gin shouldn’t be restricted to where the botanicals or base spirit comes from. Scottish Gin as a brand can be compared to a car or technology brand. Many components and raw materials are sourced from around the world and are carefully put together to create the final product; for example, a BMW or a Mercedes is promoted as a German car brand, although these cars are made using materials from around the world. It is the term Scottish Gin as a brand asset that has value.

We don’t view gins that are partly produced outside of Scotland that are blended or undergo some further production process as being Scottish Gin. For example, a brand might have a base gin made at a big English distillery and shipped to Scotland, where another distillate is added or cold compounded with other botanicals. When 90% of the gin in the bottle was pre-made outside of Scotland, it doesn’t make that gin a Scottish Gin. In no way does this make the gin inferior or inadequate quality, but simply branding or marketing that gin as being a Scottish Gin, in our opinion, devalues the term Scottish Gin, undermines the brands and producers making their gin in Scotland and doesn’t inspire consumer confidence.

Partnering with larger distilleries

Having visited several Scottish Gin distilleries and seeing the number of stills and brands in Scotland producing Scottish Gin has been impressive and provided us with some great insight. We also understand, respect, and support the many Scottish Gin brands who have opted to have their Scottish Gin produced under contract by another distillery in Scotland. We will help and work with both types of businesses if the company is based in Scotland and their gin or gins are made in Scotland.

We understand that every business has to start somewhere, and we appreciate that not every gin that claims to be a Scottish Gin is made here in Scotland – it’s a simple fact. The Gin Cooperative will not knowingly promote gin on our website or social media networks that claim Scottish provenance but are not produced in Scotland. We can promise these brands and businesses that if and when they move their gin production to Scotland and their gin is being marketed as a Scottish Gin, then we will support that business or brand.

Conclusion

As a business established to help showcase and promote Scottish Gin through our website, social media channels and content, we are committed to helping grow and protect the term Scottish Gin and, in turn, provide a trusted, honest and premium voice for the Scottish Gin category. We will also seek to work with other organisations, groups, societies or government bodies who want to see the Scottish Gin category grow.

In the long term, we would like to see some form of legal protection for the term Scottish Gin, similar to the protection and recognition afforded to Scottish Whisky. It may take the form of a Geographical Indicator, some form of protection under Advertising or Marketing guidelines from the ASA or simply a written agreement among producers and brand owners. Whatever the framework or format, some official recognition of Scottish Gin is critical and should be a priority for the industry.

We also look forward to seeing the plans and ideas that the recent alliance between The Scottish Craft Distillers Association (SCDA) and Scotland Food and Drink will put forward and implement. We want to ensure our approach to working with Scottish Gin makers is transparent, open and honest. Consumers and businesses deserve that whenever they see the term Scottish Gin it represents a genuine product of Scotland, made in Scotland by a Scottish company.

We will provide our support and voice to support any campaign or action that will ensure the protection of the Scottish Gin category, ensuring the term is protected and, in turn, protecting the many unique businesses, brand owners and people producing excellent Scottish Gin.

Scottish Gins Awards Distilleries