A collaboration between Third Eye Distillery and Four Pillars brings collectively the flavours of India and Australia, and introduces two limited-edition gins
A collaboration between Third Eye Distillery and Four Pillars brings collectively the flavours of India and Australia, and introduces two limited-edition gins
Now, you possibly can style lemon myrtle on a Goan seaside, or a gin-and-tonic with cardamom twist on the Australian shore. The love of a great gin has created a cross-continental collaboration that has reaped two limited-edition spirits.
The founders of Goa-based Third Eye Distillery — Rahul Mehra, Sakshi Saigal and Vidur Gupta — met Australia’s Four Pillars Distillery staff on the International Wine and Spirits Competition in London, when the previous’s flagship gin, Stranger & Sons, scored a formidable 98/100. It was their second assembly, after a night discussing gins at Bar Convent Berlin in 2019. Meanwhile, Cameron Mackenzie, Stuart Gregor and Matt Jones of the Yarra Valley distillery have been on the ceremony to just accept the trophy for the International Gin Distillery of the Year.
Rahul Mehra, Sakshi Saigal and Vidur Gupta
| Photo Credit: Assad Dadan
What began as a gathering of minds, led to buying and selling substances throughout the Indian Ocean by a worldwide pandemic. The groups embraced digital tastings and invented ‘Zoom’ distilling. The Third Eye trio shared botanicals rooted in India’s heritage with the Australians to distil Spice Trade, whereas the Four Pillars reciprocated with distinctive flavours from Down Under to create Trading Tides. “To put it simply, you can expect two unique gins that combine the best of Australia and India in a bottle, through the expertise of two diverse distillers,” says Saigal.
Spice alternate
How does a distillery select the perfect botanicals to mirror the terroir? “There were many emails sent, discussing Indian and Australian botanicals,” explains Mackenzie of Four Pillars. “Sakshi chose the Aussie lemon myrtle, river mint and anise myrtle, and we came to the decision of using Indian black and green cardamom, long pepper, teppal and fresh chilli. These spices created a vibrant, big and loud gin — just what we were after.”
After rounds of trial and error, the bouquet of botanicals that made the ultimate lower have been exchanged by way of ship between November 2020 and early 2021. “The gin at Four Pillars is spice forward, while Trading Tides is more citrus forward,” provides Saigal.
Cameron Mackenzie, Stuart Gregor and Matt Jones
| Photo Credit: Special association
The two distilleries have produced 24,000 bottles every of Spice Trade and Trading Tides, for his or her home and world markets.
The botanicals in Spice Trade, distilled in Australia embrace a mixture of native herbs, nuts and berries, together with the Indian additions reminiscent of anise and lemon myrtle, finger lime, black cardamom, cashew, cassia, coriander seeds, inexperienced cardamom, inexperienced schezwan ( tirphal), juniper, lengthy pepper, macadamia nut, pepperberry, purple chilli. While the botanical combine utilized in Goa, for Trading Tides Gin has their signature juniper berries, white pepper together with anise myrtle, lemon myrtle, rivermint, angelica and liquorice from Australia, with additions of Indian coriander, grapefruit peels, mangosteen, dried kokum and tamarind.
Spice Trade Gin
| Photo Credit: Special association
At the Yarra Valley distillery, their first collaboration with Indian spices has been effectively acquired. “Spice Trade has been a hit among our gin fans. It’s something quite unique as it’s not a clean gin. The spices are oily, the two cardamoms and finger lime give a cloudy finish, while the turmeric fills the palate with a solid freshness. Our customers love it in a G&T with salt and lemon — it adds that bit extra to a classic cocktail,” Mackenzie shares.
Sustainable decisions
Carbon neutrality at Yarra: “We’re extremely proud to be the first carbon neutral gin distillery in Australia. This certification, under Climate Active, is only awarded to businesses that have reached a state of achieving zero net emissions,” says Mackenzie. The staff recycles, reuses and replenishes the setting, “from turning spent oranges into marmalade to feeding spent botanicals to local pigs for feed, and installing solar panels. To offset what can be an energy intensive production process we’re purchasing carbon credits which is helping us to achieve zero net emissions”.
Water conservation in Goa: “We’re mindful of our impact on the environment,” says Saigal. To scale back and protect the water used for his or her 16-hour distillation run, Third Eye has invested in a tank that recycles the water (10,000 litres is saved per run). Water drained from the chiller is directed to the botanical backyard on the premises. They have collaborated with No Nasties, a model dedicated to natural, truthful commerce and vegan garments, for his or her merchandise, and with Corugami for his or her shipper packing containers constructed from sustainable supplies which might be 100% biodegradable. “Our most recent partnership with ecoSPIRITS will introduce low waste, low carbon spirits packaging technology,” he provides.
Mixing flavours
Third Eye Distillery isn’t any stranger to collaborations. In 2020, Perry Road Peru, the nation’s first distilled cocktail in a bottle — a partnership with The Bombay Canteen — married the pink guavas ( perus) from Perry Road carts in Bandra, Mumbai, with Stranger & Sons gin. The restricted batch was such successful, and a second (and closing batch) was launched in 2021, together with ‘travelling meals’ ready by The Bombay Canteen, pairing Indian flavours with the cocktail’s distinct sweetness.
As Trading Tides hits the native market, Saigal appears again, saying, “From first meeting the Four Pillars team at the Bar Convent Berlin [to now], this has been a thrilling collaboration.”
Trading Tides is ₹3,500 in Karnataka and Maharashtra, and ₹2,520 in Goa for a 720 ml bottle (42.8% ABV); Spice Trade retails at ₹3,250 in Karnataka, ₹2,750 in Maharashtra and ₹2,520 in Goa for a 700 ml bottle (43.8% ABV).
Source: www.thehindu.com
