Food & Drink Awards 2020

www.lux-review.com Page 41 LUX 2020 Food & Drink Awards Pembrokeshire Gin Co. was established in 2018 and is owned and managed solely by Charlotte Clark, an entrepreneur and lover of gin. The company handcrafts gins that are inspired by its hometown of Tenby and have inspired a devoted following of fellow gin lovers across Wales and beyond. Their flagship product, a Rosemary & Citrus Gin, is the culmination of Charlotte’s own recipes and conscientious collaboration with the distiller, Alex Jungmayr from In The Welsh Wind, to create a unique speciality gin that is firmly rooted to its Tenby origins by the locally sourced botanicals. The inimitable flavour profile and branding has come together to produce an exceptional bottle of gin that has picked up numerous accolades such as Best in Wales 2020, ‘Best Gin in Wales’ at The Gin Guide Awards 2020 and two ‘Highly Commended’ accolades in the London Dry Gin category and the Contemporary Gin category. Pairing her own wealth of knowledge of the spirits industry and the success of the Rosemary & Citrus Gin with the expert insights of distiller Alex, Charlotte was able to launch a brand-new gin this year: Welshcake Gin. The highly anticipated gin uses orange, cinnamon, nutmeg and currants to create a flavour unmatched by any other gin on the market and just like the Rosemary & Citrus Gin before it, has been successfully launched to uproarious praise. Charlotte sells her two outstanding gins in Pembrokeshire Gin Co.’s own speciality store alongside 500 other brands that are principally gins. Armed with insights into retail and wholesale selling of spirits and a passionate interest in consumer trends, Charlotte is able to adapt and evolve the Pembrokeshire Gin Co. to ensure it is always producing the freshest, most exciting products for its loyal customers. As a result, she is now working closely with distiller Alex again as they explore Formed in 2018 out of a love of gin and of the company’s hometown of Tenby, Pembrokeshire Gin Co. is the creator of multi-award-winning, hand-crafted gins that have acquired a cult following across Wales and the UK as a whole. Following the successful launch of their newest gin and looking forward to expanding their selection even further, Pembrokeshire Gin Co. is definitely one to watch. Sep20532 Pembrokeshire Gin Co. For The Love Of Gin the creation of a rum that she can release next summer. They are taking time with this project, making sure that come summer 2021, she will have a unique, delicious rum that she can proudly offer to her customers. As a result of her forward-thinking resilience, Charlotte’s one-woman operation has seen exceptional growth in only two years. What started as a relatively unknown gin from a small Welsh coastal town with few routes to market grew in only twelve-months to become an award-winning gin that is known and loved by customers all across the UK. Operating in a hugely competitive market such as the spirits industry requires hard graft, and Charlotte applied this to her own business so that now, instead of fighting to make her brand known, she is able to see people coming directly to her to seek out her well-reputed product. Even when faced with the impacts of Covid-19 which hit small coastal towns such as Tenby heavily, owing to their reliance on tourism, Charlotte and Pembrokeshire Gin Co. adapted to survive. Easter should be the busiest period of the year for the company and shop, but as it fell into the depths of the first UK lockdown, the shop was unable to open. Instead, online sales saw a massive rise and the support of new and old customers across the UK meant the company still experienced thriving business activity, even picking up some of its proudest accolades during this taxing period of uncertainty. It is undoubtedly a hard time to be a business owner, especially of an independent small business that is entirely your own responsibility. Charlotte, however, is a big believer in the power of grit and hard work, and driven by her passion for gin and for Tenby, there is no doubt she will continue pushing the Pembrokeshire Gin Co. to its full, creative potential over the years ahead. Contact: Charlotte Clark Company: Pembrokeshire Gin Co. Web Address: www.pembsginco.co.uk