Warner's Distillery launched in 2012 as Warner Edwards Distillery after two sons of farmers, Tom Warner and Sion Edwards met at agricultural college and stumbled on the idea of a distillery to harness essential oils from botanicals (specifically lavender) grown on their respective family farms. They thought initially about using the stills to make gin during the "off season" when lavender wasn't available, but over time, well, we're glad they decided to make gin full time!
Setting up shop in Tom's 200 year old family barn in Harrington, England, they used water from a spring 300 metres away, the distillery underwent an overhaul in 2019 when Tom took over operations together with wife Tina and they shortened the distillery name to Warner's.
Today, the updated bottle design has maintained the Warner’s brand triangle, which represents the barn where the gin is distilled, and the label includes both an English lion and Welsh dragon to represent both founders.
From its founding until the current day, sustainability is at the heart of what they do and Honeybee gin is delightful example of this.
Learn more about Honeybee gin from Tom Warner himself! (please note that due to Australia's strict biosecurity laws, those seeds had to be confiscated prior to your flight)
As the video suggests, Honeybee gin is made with fresh honey from Warner's Distillery beehives (they have a full time beekeeper!), plus juniper, coriander seed, elderflower, cardamom, nutmeg, cinnamon, angelica root, orange peel, lemon peel, rose petal, chamomile flowers, rosemary, sage leaf, fresh root ginger, star anise, hibiscus flower, blue cornflower petals, quince, dried grapefruit peel, fresh lime peel, lavender, plus a few a secret ingredients…Essentially an English country garden in a glass, and that follows through from the nose through to the palate. You get the unmistakeable honey notes that smooths everything out, making it a delicious floral, zesty gin with a delicate sweetness and beautiful mouthfeel.
This is one you can definitely drink on its own...but if you want to try it in a G&T, try it with the Fever-Tree Indian Tonic, a classic tonic that has hints of citrus that won't clash with the gin.