Bottoms up! The Royal Collection Trust recently announced that it is launching its own gin label with a strong connection to Queen Elizabeth II, who is reportedly an avid gin fan.
Per a press release from the charity, which organizes the opening of the main royal palaces and their accompanying stores to the public, the libation is aptly titled Buckingham Palace Gin. “The spirit is infused with citrus and herbal notes derived from 12 botanicals, several of which are from Buckingham Palace garden, including lemon verbena, hawthorn berries, bay leaves and mulberry leaves,” the release explained.
According to the statement, which was shared on Monday, July 13, the vast garden at the 94-year-old monarch’s residence “provides a habitat for 30 species of birds and more than 250 species of wildflowers.”
Additionally, the mulberry trees that will supply leaves for the gin were initially planted during the reign of James I. Currently, there are 40 different species of such trees planted throughout the palace garden.
Buckingham Palace Gin, which boasts an impressive 42 percent ABV, is slated be served at official events at the Palace going forward. It is available to purchase online (at around $50 per bottle) but is only sold in the U.K. and is currently out of stock. All profits from sales of the gin will go to The Royal Collection Trust, which helps manage and conserve the Queen’s extensive art collection and has been struggling amid the coronavirus pandemic.
The distillers of the gin suggest serving it by pouring “a measure of the gin into an ice-filled short tumbler before topping up with tonic and garnishing with a slice of lemon.” The result is the “perfect thirst-quencher.”
As for how Queen Elizabeth likes her gin? Former royal chef Darren McGrady told Food & Wine in August 2017 that the royal, who is known to occasionally enjoy more than one cocktail per day, likes to sip on a gin and Dubonnet with a slice of lemon and a lot of ice just before lunch.
Margaret Rhodes, the Queen’s cousin, has also claimed that the monarch will imbibe in a dry gin martini with lunch for good measure.
Buckingham Palace gin is the latest drink with strong ties to the royal family. Prince Charles produces organic gin on his Highgrove Estate in Cornwall, while the Queen’s Holyrood Palace in Scotland distills its own single malt whisky. There’s also branded Buckingham Palace champagne and port.
