Gold for Northern Irish Shortcross in Gin Masters

Northern Ireland's premium Shortcross Gin has won a prestigious gold award in the annual Gin Masters competition in London.

The gin, distilled at Rademon Estate Distillery in Crossgar, county Down, gained gold in the highly competitive Ultra Premium category in the awards which are recognised internationally as a measure of outstanding quality and taste.

Shortcross, the first in a new generation of Northern Irish craft gins, is produced by husband and wife team, David, the Master Distiller, and Fiona Boyd Armstrong, and features unique botanical ingredients from the family estate.

The enterprising couple formed the business in 2012 and have since diversified into malt Irish whiskey, due to be released soon.

Gold in the gin masters is the latest major award to be gained by the small batch distillery. Shortcross was the only Northern Irish gin to be recognised in the coveted awards

The awards, judged by a panel of experts, showcases the remarkable developments in gin distilling throughout the UK and Ireland. The competition was organised by Spirit Business, the main trade journal for the industry.

The growth of the gin category in recent years has been nothing short of remarkable. Propelled by an advancing global cocktail scene, mounting consumer interest in locally made products with heaps of heritage, and an evolving taste for bitter drinks among consumers, gin has well and truly made itself comfortable at the top of the spirits pedestal.

The gin sector in the British Isles is now seeing more experimentation than ever, as a number of near-­forgotten styles join the ranks of back­-bar staples once again.

An increasing number of producers are looking to unusual base ingredients, quirky botanicals, and terroir­-driven flavour profiles - at the same time as maintaining a key focus on quality - meaning there has never been a more exciting time to sample more than 150 gins, which collectively represent the spectrum of the category.