TWO Dorset friends’ passion for artisan products and a love of a good G&T led to the creating of Pothecary Gin.

Created and distilled in Dorset, friends Martin Jennings and Lukasz Dwornik, wanted to create a gin that was distinctive and could be worthy of more than simply slinging a glug of tonic water on top.

They wanted to create an ‘organic, handcrafted, artisan’ experience.

Martin has worked in hospitality and has spent the last 30 years in the drinks business, most recently as a wine development specialist, Lukasz has spent the last 10 years working as a senior hospitality manager, most recently as general manager at Christchurch Harbour Hotel.

The pair said: “The inspiration came from a late night after work drink, a G & T, that was somewhat disappointing. In a state of tiredness and you could say, with a bit of an arrogant swagger, we decided that we could do better, that we could make a more interesting and importantly, more distinctive gin than the one that had simply disappeared with the addition of a large splash of tonic.”

So established in 2015, the pair set about brewing their unique blend of botanicals in Wick Village, Bournemouth.

They distil the botanicals individually then blend them together to create the aromatic, silky-smooth gin, then each bottle individually filled, corked and sealed by hand.

Their gin goes against tradition, in that it uses lavender, mulberry and honey, as well as

organic lemons from Sicily, wild-foraged Tila flowers from Poland, wild-foraged juniper from Bulgaria and not forgetting the organic lavender from Provence, which cuts through the gin to give it a distinctive flavour.

The pair didn’t have any experience before they started making Pothecary but Martin is a WSET approved educator and has taught spirits production to students up to level three before. It takes three days to produce a bottle from start to finish.

The friends said Pothecary can be drunk as a sipping gin with ice or mixed with tonic. They said: “We have found that it pairs very well with a variety of tapas style dishes or salmon and trout.”

And the gin has already won accolades, winning a double gold at the San Francisco World Spirit Competition and a silver outstanding in the gin category and a silver in the gin and tonic category at the International Wine and Spirit Competition. They even have some famous fans including pop group Scouting for Girls.

You can find out more on Twitter @PothecatyGin