Justin Green

Growing up in Ballyvolane House gave this distiller and food-lover enormous respect for nature and a nose for the unusual flavours that infuse his gin

What did your mother make you?

Kedgeree. My mum was a fanatical salmon-fisher and she was always bringing home wild salmon and trying out different ways to cook it. Her take on kedgeree with wild salmon was epic.

The meal you will always remember?

First date with my wife, in Hong Kong.

Your defining food experience?

Growing up on a farm, where we rear and grow our own produce, gave me an early understanding and appreciation of where food comes from, so it’s been a gradual thing rather than a defining moment.

First dish you ever cooked?

An omelette.

What is your comfort food?

Fried eggs on toasted sourdough.

What is your hangover cure?

A glass of beetroot and apple juice, a full Irish and a pot of tea.

What do you drink?

Bertha’s Revenge gin and Fever Tree tonic, with an orange peel and ice.

You can only eat three things for the rest of your life, what are they?

Farm eggs, potatoes, ice cream. The nicest smell in the world? Freshly grilled bacon.

You can go anywhere and have anything to eat with any one person. Where, what and who?

Sharing fish and chips from The Fish Wife in Cork with my terrier Stormy.

How important is food to you?

Hugely important. I am concerned about how food is produced and that farmers are not properly paid. The industrialisation of modern farming is having a massive detrimental effect on the environment and animal welfare. It is making us sick. It’s also emptying the rural communities of people and this is bad for society and our culture. End of rant!

What’s always in your kitchen?

An Accusharp knife sharpener. Sharp knives make cooking much better, safer and fun. I have a couple of magnificent knives, hand-made by Fingal Ferguson from Gubbeen in west Cork.

Favourite restaurant in Ireland?

It’s hard to pin down one restaurant. However, the restaurant I return to the most is Miyazaki in Cork city, which is probably my favourite. It’s a tiny Japanese noodle shop with the most delicious authentic dishes you can imagine. The food is utterly sublime and far from simple. I always make sure I get in early as it fills up quickly. And abroad? The Chinnery Bar, Mandarin Oriental, Hong Kong.

What’s your sweet treat?

Murphy’s ice cream. Worst meal ever? I can’t recall, I must have blocked it out!

What is your guilty pleasure?

Chocolate.

Are you careful about what you eat?

Probably not careful enough! I try to eat less meat and more vegetables. I’ve cut down on bread when dining out, as I was always stuffed before the starters came.

What’s your perfect family meal?

Sharing curries and stories with my family, the dogs at my feet snacking on the scraps. Justin owns Ballyvolane House and is co-owner of Ballyvolane House Spirits Company, which produces Bertha’s Revenge gin. See ballyvolanehouse.ie; ballyvolanespirits.ie In conversation with Sophie White

“Growing up on a farm gave me an early appreciation of where food comes from”