World Gin Day 2015: This weekend’s the time for ginthusiasts at Junipalooza

Gin has been a London favourite since it was brewed in bath tubs back in the 1800s. So if you’re a juniper enthusiast, get ready for World Gin Day tomorrow – and a weekend of fine drinking.

 

With a swathe of high-end brews, such as Sipsmith and Hendrick’s, sparking a renaissance of the premium tipple, it’s a drink that is no longer just “mother’s ruin”. And it has certainly gained a more salubrious following than the debauched crowd pictured in William Hogarth’s famous Gin Lane picture.

 

The City of London Distillery comes highly recommended by blogger and gin aficionado Emma Stokes. She told The Capitalist: “I love drinking at the City of London Distillery and East London Liquor Company as their venue is actually a gin distillery, and gin stills make the perfect backdrop to a G&T.” The bar’s reputation hasn’t gone unnoticed by fellow ginthusiasts, who gave the bar two awards for its spirits last year.

 

If you want to head a little further afield, weave your way to the Junipalooza festival in Soho this weekend. Over 24 ginsmiths from around the world will be making their way to Soho’s The Vinyl Factory, bottles and botanicals in tow, to present their wares to gin-crazed Londoners all weekend.

 

Tickets for tomorrow (£12.50) have already sold out, but you can still get Sunday entry from the Gin Foundry website. Bottoms up!