John’s experience in high quality shows in his attention to detail, “we played around with botanicals and how they worked with different proofs, alcohol strengths. Even playing around with different waters. Spring water, bottled water, even Sheffield tap water. If there was a storm or something like that it would change the mineral components of spring water and the flavor compounds in the gin distiller could attach to different mineral compounds and you get allsorts of flavors given out – good and bad flavors. You probably wouldn’t be able notice it massively but certainly if you put two side by side you would and definitely if you are tasting one from six months down the line there would be a difference.” The distillery now uses demineralised water to guarantee an exact consistency in our production.

The winning avenue of this gin lineage combined five familiar gin botanicals: juniper, coriander, cassia bark, angelica and licorice root. John gave his personal twist to this blend with infusions of pink grapefruit, elderflower and dandelion. “We buy the pink grapefruit fresh then hand peel and dry the peel ourselves. It takes about four to five days to dry completely. The elderflower we buy fresh or frozen from a farm in Lincolnshire and the dandelion is from a Yorkshire company. We have hand sourced dandelion and dried it ourselves in the passed, but it’s tricky to get right. It can be quite damp and smells a little like grass, it’s quite herbaceous.”

The result of all this hard work is a wonderfully crisp, fresh, versatile distilled gin. The flavors are deliciously smooth but distinct enough to hold their own mixed with a tonic or as a component for cocktails and can be equally enjoyed simply poured over ice and served with a slither of grapefruit. The delicate blend of base flavors warm the palate then the grapefruit kicks in, washing over you like a sweet citrus wave.

“We think about gin a lot!” laughs John, “what direction we want to go in, trying to do something that would have a good export value as well as appealing to the UK market.” He has been patient, carefully growing the brand, “because we are small we can work on customer service and build relationships.” Using contacts made in his previous experience abroad and increasing connections closer to home, Sir Robin of Locksley current availability is mostly limited to those two great metropolises of the world, New York – and Sheffield… Making it nearly as elusive as its outlaw namesake. It is a small batch, hand raised gin but this being the modern world, you can easily track a bottle down on the web.

As the Locksley name suggests, John prides himself on his local roots. He sources his botanicals as locally as possible and chose the location for the distillery with as much meticulous care and consideration as he has put into every step, and every drop, of Sir Robin of Locksley gin. The success of Harry Bearley’s alloy, protecting the world’s cutlery from tarnishing and various patient claims meant production soon out grew Portland Works. Following the decline of its industrial heyday and half a decade of neglect the Grade II* listed building now houses a growing array of artisans ranging from jewelers to bicycle makers, musicians to high-tech CNC and of course, a distillery. John’s neighbors, PML Plating Ltd are one of the last independent family owned plating companies. When they are not silver plating trumpets for the Queen they still carry on Harry Bearley’s legacy, making stainless steel cutlery.

Locksley Distilling – www.locksleydistilling.com