Burns Night and the Ballad of Bonnie Gin
IT’S enough to make the Bard choke on his dram: The Scotland Office has urged people to celebrate Burns Night – with a glass of gin.
In its desperation to see exports match whisky, the Scotland Office has launched a Scottish gin trail of 12 of the country’s best distilleries, bars and landmarks – and is encouraging people to toast their haggis with gin tonight.
Gin is worth £1.76billion to the UK economy, sold in 139 countries and with exports up by 37 per cent in the past five years. About 70 per cent of the UK’s gin is produced north of the Border.
But the Scotland Office’s suggestion it should replace whisky tonight, alongside the traditional haggis, neeps and tatties, has raised more than a few eyebrows.
Rosemary Gallagher of the Scotch Whisky Association said: ‘We’re not sure what Robert Burns, known for his love of a dram, would have to say about people toasting his birthday with gin.’
The new Scottish gin trail has been created by the Wine and Spirit Trade Association, with the support of the UK Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs and was launched at the Edinburgh Gin Distillery.
From Shetland Reel Gin on the UK’s most northerly inhabited island of Unst, the trail winds its way south to craft distilleries in the Highlands, Fife and the Central Belt.
UK Environment Secretary Elizabeth Truss said: ‘This new trail captures the variety and diversity of UK gin-making, providing visitors from all over the world the opportunity to celebrate Burns Night by experiencing the best of British gin from all across Scotland.’
Scottish Secretary David Mundell said: ‘Our distillers are creating some really unique gins through experimenting with techniques from the whisky industry and using new blends of local botanicals. It’s exciting to see such innovation within the great British tradition of gin distilling.’