"The Most Awarded Gin in the World!"
The year is 1876. Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky has just completed his brilliant "Swan Lake," Alexander Bell is awaiting a patent for the telephone, and James Burrough creates the unique Beefeater. Burrough was born in Devon and built a successful career as a pharmacist, which took him to another continent – Toronto, Canada. He then returned to London and bought a distillery on Cale Street in Chelsea for the considerable sum of 400 British pounds. Thus began the story of the most recognizable gin in the world. Initially, the distillery produced liqueurs, fruit gins, and punches. For the first time, the Beefeater brand, named after the famous guards of the Tower of London, was mentioned 13 years after the business started.
After Burrough's death, his sons took over management and successfully expanded the business. They moved the distillery to progressively larger, more modern, and well-equipped premises to meet increased demand and production growth. In the 1950s, a new Beefeater distillery was opened in Kennington, which remains "home" to the world's most awarded gin to this day.
Beefeater acquired a brilliant reputation as a premium brand and gained worldwide recognition. The brand conquered new markets, and every fourth bottle imported into the USA was Beefeater. In 1963, Beefeater achieved an incredible feat – the brand was chosen as the sole beverage in its category on board the maiden voyage of the "Queen Elizabeth II" ship to New York.
After almost a century of family management of the brand, the Burrough family sold the company to the giant Whitebread. In 1995, the legendary master distiller and today's synonym for the brand – Desmond Payne – joined the Beefeater team, and 10 years later, Beefeater became part of Pernod Ricard.
The distillery in Kennington preserves the secret recipe for Beefeater Gin, which has remained unchanged since its creation in the 19th century. The gin is produced by distilling pure alcohol from high-quality grain raw materials. A mixture of 9 natural botanicals is added to the distillate: juniper, angelica root, angelica seeds, coriander seeds, licorice, almond, orris root, Seville oranges, and lemon peel. What is different and unique about the production of this premium gin is the soaking of the lemon and orange peels and juniper berries for 24 hours before distillation. This long process allows for the extraction of the natural flavor of the plants and the creation of a rich aromatic palette. Distillation takes 8 hours, and control is carried out by master distiller Desmond Payne.
