A Visit to: Brentingby Gin, Melton Mowbray

13 November 2018
Nestled in the heart of the village of Brentingby near Melton Mowbray is something quite unexpected... But it's where you'll find the Brentingby Gin Distillery.

Brentingby Gin is unique and a true craft gin. Handcrafted and produced in Brentingby created by gin-lover, Bruce Midgley. Brentingby Gin has already made its mark on the nation and is a favourite of some of the UK's biggest celebrities. Bruce has put his heart and soul into creating a fantastic gin to differ from the rest and it certainly does just that!

Produced locally in a picturesque village near Melton called Brentingby.
The first of the two gin's currently in the Brentingby Gin collection created by Bruce is the staple 'Brentingby Gin', a London dry gin in a stunning copper bottle with citrus, coriander and zesty notes from grapefruit and pine and a subtle taste of hibiscus to finish.

The second, is the 'Brentingby Pink Gin' with rooibos and baobab, in a chic matte bottle. A refreshing and floral sweetness alongside fresh pine, peppercorn, and hibiscus with a citrus taste to finish.

The rooibos and baobab pink gin by Brentingby Gin.
I've been a gin lover for many years and I've tried and tested quite a few from the craft and the classics. But often disappointed, I class myself as someone rather fussy when it comes to a really good gin and the Brentingby bottles have taken pride of place in my bureau bar (designed by Florrie at Curious Designs) and has been my gin of choice since I got my hands on them.

Bruce really has created something unique with his gin, produced right here in Brentingby just a stone's throw from Melton Mowbray, which Bruce tells me is down to his totally unique still, Ayanda a 10 plate copper column still, designed by Bruce himself.

The precious still and Bruce's pride and joy, Ayanda.
There are many things that differ Brentingby Gin from the crowd but recently for a fantastic reason... It's gone green! Announced just days ago as a green distillery, after converting to sustainable energy for each distillation. Brentingby Gin is green and as environmentally friends as possible with every distillation now utilised wind power generated from the Brentingby wind turbine.

As a relatively new gin on the block, (but not for long) these could be the ideal gift to surprise your gin-loving family members this Christmas, and what better gift than one made and produced locally that you can all enjoyed together over the festive period.

I interviewed the man himself, Bruce and we talked all about the gin, the business and much more!

Take a read...

Sleek and stunning branding, a bottled copper beauty.
Thank you for inviting me down to the beautiful village of Brentingby and your wonderful distillery. Please tell our readers more about the gin, the story of and how the idea for Brentingby Gin came about?

Bruce: Brentingby Gin was born out of my love for classic gins. I’ve long been a gin drinker and wanted to start a brand up here in the home of pork pies and stilton cheese. The area is already renowned for its food culture, why not drinks too? 

Brentingby Gin is special and it’s not just me and you who love it… It’s been graded a 5 Star+ by Difford’s Guide 2018. What makes Brentingby Gin unique and why does it differ from the rest?

Bruce: I knew from the start that I wanted to make a gin that would stand the test of time and that I would want to buy and drink. A fan of classic London dry style gins I, therefore, went in search of the right people to help me achieve my goal. I was lucky enough to secure the help of Tom Nichol, the person behind the distillation of Tanqueray gin for countless years, and the person responsible for the Tanqueray ten recipe, one of my all-time favourite gins. We distill on a still that I designed personally, with a handful of carefully chosen botanicals which come together to make an incredibly smooth gin. Bottled at a slightly higher ABV than some gins at 45% you’ll find that it won’t get drowned in a gin and tonic, and it makes a wonderful classic martini with a twist of pink grapefruit zest (one of our botanicals).

My favourite way to serve Brentingby Gin is with garnish of grapefruit and rosemary.

Your gin hasn’t been around long but is already making a huge impact on the market and has already achieved so much in hardly any time. Please tell our readers more about this?

Bruce: As mentioned above, I was incredibly lucky to have Tom to help me with understanding how to work with botanicals and how to choose what finally made the cut in terms of the botanical recipe. I think a lot of our success in the outside world is down to the fact that we’ve not tried to re-invent the wheel, we’ve chosen a careful line-up of ingredients, distilled them with an understanding of what they should each contribute to the gin, and have created a gin which is very drinkable, and most importantly definitely a gin with a strong juniper backbone. 

This is a fantastic achievement but the gin hasn’t just been a success nationally it’s been important for you to stick to your roots both in Brentingby, Melton and your home country, South Africa. How have you tried to incorporate the places that mean most to you into the brand and why is the local area so important to you?

Bruce: In terms of my South African heritage, the biggest nod to that is the added hibiscus flower, and the name of our still: Ayanda – the isiZulu world for augment or proliferation. In terms of my current home in Brentingby, it’s the home of some of the best local food, from the Melton Mowbray pork pies to Stilton cheese. I thought it was about time it became synonymous for something else too, great gin! There’s so much potential from the countryside around us, with the possibilities of so many locally grown botanicals too. Indeed, when we were coming up with the original recipe the problem was choosing which ones to use, and which ones to leave out and potentially save for another day and another recipe.


The gin is delicious and really stands out as something unique within the market. Where can our readers purchase the gin or have a taste locally around the Rutland area?

Bruce: Currently stocked to purchase at Oakham wines, Melton cheeseboard, Master of malt online, and from the distillery direct.

Thanks again for taking the time to share Brentingby Gin on The Rutland Blog, but it does not stop here! Bruce, you have so many plans for the future of the business and we know some are top secret… But are there any fun future plans you can share with our readers?

Bruce: As a distillery some things are best-kept secret, I can tell you we will be one of the first distilleries to power our distillation process from wind power we aim to source sustainable energy and we are now hooked up to the wind turbine in Brentingby, we have some interesting things happening in the future and it’s a case of watch this space.


Follow Brentingby Gin:
Buy here at Master of Malt

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