GIN-AISSANCE ROLLS ON AS EXPORTS HIT £500 MILLION

A THIRST for British gin around the world has exporters toasting yet another year of record sales.

Annual revenues of the spirit overseas have surpassed the £500m mark for the first time, according to the Wine And Spirit Trade Association.

It has been a decade of unprecedented demand for British gin, dubbed the ‘gin-aissance’.

Last year the amount of gin exported was worth £530m – more than double the figure in 2008.

The UK is the world’s larger exporter of the spirit, with the EU, US and Australia among the biggest markets. By value, more gin is exported than beef and the trend shows no sign of abating. The drink is also popular in this country, with Britons buying 55m bottles a year, or about 105 bottles per minute.

Miles Beale, chief executive of the Wine And Spirit Trade Association, said: ‘The global thirst for British gin continues to grow and there is no doubt those overseas are drawn to the quality of gin made here. Gin is a quintessentially British spirit and perfect for anyone to tap into.’