This “no-nonsense” gin distilled in somebody’s bedroom is now on sale at Selfridges

An award-winning gin which is produced in a spare bedroom in Staffordshire is being sold in Selfridges in the run-up to Christmas.

Lindsey and McKeller registered Greywood distillery in 2015. (Photo: Greywood Distilliery)

Fifth Spire Gin, which is made by Greywood Distillery in the spare room of a house in Litchfield, Staffordshire, shocked the spirits sector when it won a gold in the San Francisco world Spirits Competition (SFWSC) in April this year, just over a year after best friends Tom Lindsey and Rory McKerrell registered their business.

Now, the gin from one of Britain’s smallest micro-distilleries will go on sale in Birmingham’s Selfridges department store in-time for the festive season.

“They contacted us actually,” Lindsey told the drinks business, “it was pretty soon after the awards, which was a great surprise.”

Lindsey said the high-end retailer, which is currently looking to expand its craft spirits offering, reached out to them after Fifth Spire earned the pair an international accolade last Spring.

Lindsey and McKerrel both came from engineering backgrounds, but began making gin as a hobby in Lindsey’s spare room around two years ago, before registering Greywood with HM Revenue and customs (HMRC) in November 2015.

The gin-ovators produce their spirits in twin copper stills, one of which contains the main botanicals like juniper berries, coriander seed, cassia bark, angelica root, orris root, liquorice root, pink peppercorns, almonds, and Seville orange peel.

The second still is only used for fresh citrus fruits such as lemons, limes and grapefruit. The two gins are then combined to create “a luxuriously smooth spirit with a classic gin taste riding on a big wave of citrus.”

Lindsey said that they chose to go with a classic citrus gin after becoming “fed up” with gin producers adding “token botanicals” and bizarre ingredients to flavour the spirit without considering the end result.

“There’s a lot of different gin makers using weird ingredients, odd fruits and things that we think are just token botanicals. It all just seems a bit pretentious.”

“We saw through that,” he said, “and wanted to make the perfect, no-nonsense citrus gin that could be enjoyed by everyone.’

Everything is done from Lindsey’s spare room.

“Rory had just moved back home,” said Lindsey, “so we had to use my house.”

The two engineers bonded over a love of whisky, making regular trips to Scotland to explore new distilleries, but were inspired to work from their own home after discovering just how many drinks makers were operating in similar spaces to cut costs.

Lindsey said that Fifth Spire ‚ which currently retails at £52.95 at Selfridges’ Birmingham store, could be rolled out across the retailer’s branches nationwide, depending on how popular the gin proved over the festive period.

The gin can be enjoyed with or without a garnish, but artisanal online gin retailer The Juniper Club suggests that “dried bitter orange peel is a must try.”

In 2016, gin sales surpassed the £1 billion mark for the first time – 12% more than the previous year, outstripping sales of sparkling wine and beer.

The UK produces more than 500 gins, with around 6,000 worldwide. HMRC said the number of distilleries in the UK has more than doubled in four years, from 128 in 2012, to 273 in 2016.