Boatyard Old Tom Gin

Gin description

We are currently ageing Boatyard Gin spirit in first-fill bourbon barrels from Kentucky. The aged spirits will be sweetened with Fermanagh honey to give it the distinctive Old Tom flavour. Old Tom Gin was a gin recipe popular in 18th-century England, where the illegal, home-made, harsh gins of the time were sweetened with liquorice or sugar to make it more palatable to the masses. In modern times, it became rare but has experienced a resurgence in the “Craft Cocktail” movement. The name Old Tom Gin purportedly came from wooden plaques shaped like a black cat mounted on the outside wall of some pubs in 18th century England. Under the cat’s paw sign was a slot to put money in and a lead tube. From the tube would come a shot of gin, poured by the bartender inside the pub.