So how do you start to make a gin?
Well there are a number of ways you can go about this but this is how I started.
- Research the production process of gin, to really understand how it is made.
- Identify the opportunity – Is it still worth while doing it and which markets to target?
- Market research. What is selling, who is buying it and where are the trends going?
- Research the laws around making and selling gin. There are a lot of hoops to jump through to get set up, so identifying how best to set the company up.
- Research how to distribute.
- Create a business plan to see if it affordable to do.
Quite often people think it is easy to make and sell gin, and one sense they are right. You can ring up a number of distillers and give them a brief of type and style of gin you want. They will distil, bottles and package a gin for you to sell via fulfilment company. So yes it can be simple. But this is not the full story. That is a very expensive way of doing it and you are at the will of the master distillery making your brand for you. If you really want to do it yourself, it is a lot more involved and challenging!
To really own your own brand it takes a lot more effort than most people think.
Firstly it comes down to what you want to create versus what the opportunity is. The market is saturated with many gins and so whilst you need to create what you have always wanted to do, it needs to have an appeal in a crowded market. Researching the market opportunity is vitally important. Not only will it uncover unexpected opportunities but also shows some pitfalls in areas you thought you might be strong.
Secondly the amount of licences and legal applications you need to get to become a wholesaler/distributer are numerous and I will go through all of these in a later blog!
Finally can it be produced at a high quality but at a reasonable cost to be able to make it at an affordable price with good profit margins? So after my initial market research gathering a lot of market data, identifying the market opportunities I spent a huge amount of time writing my business plan.
This was possibly the most important stage of the process so far. This showed the real of cost of everything, the scale of the task to make the business a success and laid it bare of how hard this actually is gong to be.
This was the time to put in all of my projections, my costs and plans of how I wanted to expand to see if this might be possible. This showed the stark reality of just how hard it will be and influenced how my business model looked. It developed my strategy and plan to start simple, small and independently but with sustainable growth utilising online sales, local markets and independent retail to launch the brand.
It uncovered opportunities that I hadn’t though of previously but also my research showed my some markets or areas to avoid. But the biggest fact the business plan showed was just how much work was needed to just break even. When people talk about working for themselves and wanting to not have the stress of “working for the man” or a large corporation, I think they would be in for a shock. The work you do for yourself is harder, longer and quite often for a lot less money! The only solace is doing it for yourself, you ambition, your life. Well I don’t think you can put a price on that.
So back to my original question what is gin and how you make it?
The definition of gin is:-
Gin is a clear, distilled spirit with dominant botanical flavours of juniper, flowers, and fresh and dried fruit. The name gin derives from the word genever (old English), genièvre (French) and jenever (Dutch), all of which are derivatives of the Latin word juniperus, meaning juniper.
Types of Gin:-
London Dry: London Dry Gin is the most regulated of all the gins in the market. It does not necessarily have to originate in England, but it is where the style originated. It needs to distilled from ethanol in a traditional still in the presence of all the botanicals. It cannot be coloured or sweetened, and no extra ingredients can be added after distilling. This can be done through steeping or vapour infusion, but it must all be done at the same time with no other additions from the initial distillation.
Plymouth: When looking for the mellow cousin to London Dry Gin, reach for Plymouth Gin. Produced in the South of England. While most gin types can be produced by any distiller, Plymouth Gin Distillery in England is the only distillery with the rights to produce this type of gin.
Distilled Gin: This term can use the terms gin and distilled gin. The gin also needs to be distilled from ethanol in a traditional still in the presence of juniper berries. But extra flavours or colouring can be added afterwards.
Cold-compounded Gin: This is the easiest and least stringent type that can still be called gin. It must be juniper flavoured and can be made simply by adding flavourings to a neutral spirit. It can also be called Bath tub Gin
Old Tom: An older, sweeter style of gin that has a rich, malty mouthfeel and a distinct citrusy sweetness, Old Tom Gin is sometimes aged in barrels,
Genever: This is the precursor to modern gin. Originating in sixteenth-century Holland, genever is richer than gin, with a savoury, earthy, malty flavour. Distillers make genever in Holland, Belgium, and certain parts of France and Germany, distilling it from malt wine spirits in lieu of neutral grain spirits.
International Style: New expressions of gin are appearing all over the globe seemingly every day, from Spain to Japan, Brazil to the United States. Freed from the traditional botanical trappings of the London Dry style, many contemporary gin producers craft their spirits as direct reflections of their geography, incorporating local roots and botanicals.