Canada's love affair with gin entices UK spirits companies to Toronto
Eight UK craft spirits companies travel to Toronto as part of a Trade Mission supported by the UK’s Department for International Trade (DIT).
TORONTO – With new numbers showing UK gin global exports hit a record high in 2018, eight craft spirits companies from the UK have travelled to Toronto to showcase their unique products to the Ontario market as part of a Trade Mission supported by the UK’s Department for International Trade (DIT).
The mission, taking place from 26 to 28 February, showcases a variety of high quality, on-trend UK artisanal gins, whiskies, rums and other spirits to agents and buyers from the LCBO - one of the world’s largest purchasers and retailers of beverage alcohol.
Though they represent a range of spirits, all participating exporters have a gin in their portfolio, which is reflective of the gin boom taking place in Canada. Gin sales grew by double digits in Canada last year, making it the second fastest-growing spirit category. Globally, UK gin exports hit a new record in 2018 reaching £612m in sales, a 15% increase from the previous year.
For consumers and buyers there has never been a better time to discover craft UK spirits. In the past 5 years, the number of distilleries in the UK has doubled with 361 now in operation, spurring the growth of new and innovative UK spirits in the marketplace.
Producers are also embracing industry trends, including authentic regional sourcing. Featured during the Toronto visit are Warner Edwards’ handcrafted gins which are infused with botanicals from their own garden, and Conker Spirit’s Cold Brew Coffee Liqueur which is produced with locally grown wheat.
As part of the LCBO’s spring spirits release, two new UK brands will soon be available in Ontario – Kew Organic Gin by The London Distillery Company, which is crafted using seasonal flora from the Royal Botanic Gardens, and Curio Wild Coast Gin, made with hand-foraged rock samphire and distilled in small batches.
Director for UK Trade and Investment in Canada, Kevin McGurgan, said of the mission:
My team’s Food & Drink Campaign has supported UK gin exports to Canada, which have increased by almost 40% over the past five years. We are delighted to host this fantastic group of producers to encourage the continuation and diversification of this trend. Canada is one of our closest trading partners and in addition to our robust economic partnership, we also share a great appreciation for authentic food and drink products.
During the mission, the delegate companies will meet with local agents and buyers, visit stores and learn more about doing business in Ontario.
The mission companies are:
Bramley & Gage produce the strikingly smooth 6 O’clock Gin, handcrafted on the outskirts of Bristol, and a range of whole fruit artisan liqueurs, vermouths and sloe gin. A number of Bramley & Gage products are available as online exclusives at LCBO.com.
Anno Distillers was founded in 2011 by two PHD research and development chemists after they left behind their roles in the pharmaceutical industry to open Kent’s first gin distillery in 200 years. This multi-award-winning gin incorporates Kentish botanicals such as hops, samphire and local florals to create an outstanding gin inspired by the Garden of England.
Atom Brands focuses on unique presentation and world-class quality to create convention-defying, disruptive drinks brands. Their product range includes Ableforth’s Bathtub Gin, Ableforth’s Rumbullion, That Boutique-y Drinks Company as well as many other whiskies, rums, pre-mixed cocktails, seasonal advent calendars and more.
Dorset’s first gin distillery, Conker Spirit, produces genuine craft, quality-focussed, innovative spirits, including their Dorset Dry Gin with notes of elderberries, samphire and hand-picked coastal gorse flowers. They are also known for their Cold Brew Coffee Liqueur produced from British wheat spirit and Grade 1 grown specialty Ethiopian and Brazilian coffees roasted in Dorset.
Nestled just a stone’s throw from the dramatic Cornish cliff tops and the pounding Atlantic breaks in South West England, Curio is a craft distillery that has fused coastal heritage to create a variety of award-winning, hand-forged spirits with a global reach. Curio has a strong identification with locality and provenance inspired by local heritage. Their range includes Blueberry & Lime Gin and Coyaba Spiced Banana Rum.
Emporia Brands is a leading craft artisan spirit agency in the UK producing Mayfield Sussex Hop Gin, Liqueurs, Hoxton Gin and Jindea Single Estate Gin. Each of their gins features a signature botanical profile (such as Sussex hops, natural coconut, pink grapefruit and first flush Darjeeling tea) and targets a specific consumer profile.
Tarquin’s Cornish Gin is the first gin to be crafted in the South West of England in over 100 years. Independently established in 2012, Tarquin’s Cornish Gin proudly combines authentically traditional distilling techniques alongside progressively modern approaches. Every single multi-award-winning bottle is filled, labelled, waxed, stamped and signed by hand. Their range includes Cornish Dry Gin and Rhubarb & Raspberry Gin.
Warner Edwards gins are hand-crafted in small batches on Falls Farm in Harrington using natural spring water, hedgerow botanicals and herbs from their garden. Known for their colourful, etched-glass, wax-sealed bottles, their range of gins includes Elderflower Gin, Rhubarb Gin, Honeybee Gin and Harrington Dry Gin.
For more information about the Mission or about DIT’s services contact:
Laura Pixley, Acting Food & Drink Trade Officer [email protected]
About the UK’s Department for International Trade (DIT)
With professional advisers, both within the UK and across more than 100 international markets, the Department for International Trade (DIT) is the Government Department that helps UK-based companies succeed in the global economy and assists overseas companies to bring high-quality investment to the UK. The government recently set out its long-term Export Strategy to increase total exports as a proportion of GDP from the current 30% to 35%, and a new Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) strategy reinforcing its current position as the No. 1 destination in Europe for FDI.