What better for Mother's Day than a bottle of 'Mother's Ruin'? We've selected some of the finest gins on the market which are sure to give your long-suffering parent a treat.
This is our now-legendary collection of Mother’s Day gin, but if you’re looking for non-boozy alternatives for Mother’s Day then our Mother’s Day gifts round-up is just the thing.
The Craft Gin Club’s ‘For A Special Mum’ G&T box
The Craft Gin Club have made their name by producing gin-by-post subscription boxes with an extra twist: as well as a bottle of the spirit itself, they also provide all sorts of bits and pieces to go alongside it. And they’ve brought that same idea to their Mother’s Day gift boxes.
The pick of the bunch is the ‘For A Special Mum’ bundle, which includes one of the most beautiful bottles of gin we’ve ever seen: La Distillerie de Monaco, which has all the charm of a 1930s Art Deco poster. As well as this heavily fruited gin there are also half a dozen bottles of Lovely tonic water, lemon & thyme olives, sugared almonds and some dried raspberry and juniper garnish. The flowers you see above, sadly, are not included.
Mom Gin
The spelling of this gin’s name is perfect for Mother’s Day across the Atlantic, but for those who go with a ‘u’ rather than an ‘o’ it’s still more than worth a look: this is a punchy, blackcurrant flavoured gin that pulls no punches with its strong flavouring. It makes for a delicious drink — albeit one that’s some way away from what you’d normally think of as G&T — that is good with tonic but perfect for cocktails.
£25.99 from thedrinksbasket.com
Gin with a taste of the Devon coast
One of the Country Life team, Rosie Paterson, spends most of her life in Salcombe these days — so clearly she has tried the gin.’I’ve tried quite a lot of it,’ she says, sheepishly. It’s not cheap, but it is lovely —and the card people at thortful.com are doing an offer of a card and a bottle for just over £42.
Salcombe Gin, £39.95 from The Whisky Exchange or £42.49 including a card from thortful.com
Gin and Macaroons, together at last
One Gin — whose Sage & Apple gin has long been one of our favourites — have put together a gift hamper with Miss Macaroon, bringing gin and macaroons together in a collection of real loveliness, with a company whose profits go to help long-term unemployed young people.
The ‘large’ hamper has a full bottle plus 21 macaroons (the flavours are spiced apple, sage, mandarin, lemon and tonka bean) plus two gorgeous copper mugs, while a smaller version has two 5cl miniatures plus seven macaroons (in lemon and tonka bean). The gin is lovely, and the macaroons as good as you’d hope for — especially the quite stunning lemon flavour.
£25 to £95 from thespiritofone.com
Tanqueray Blackcurrant Royale gin
Looking for all the world like the sort of thing they’d have swigged in Tsarist Russia, this grand, almost imperial-looking bottle is the sort of eye-catching concoction that you’d love to have on your drinks trolley — as well as something that looks far more expensive than £20 (its current offer price). There are notes of vanilla as well as blackcurrant, and it makes a wonderful G&T garnished with berries.
Caorunn Raspberry Gin
The Scottish gin maker Caorunn has not ventured into the world of flavoured gin before now — not too surprising, when you consider how tricky it might be to balance their regular mix of dandelion, heather, ‘coul bush apple’, bog myrtle and rowan berries with something else. But this raspberry edition is an intriguing prospect.
On the shelves at Sainsbury’s or available online from Master of Malt at £16.90
Chase Hedgerow Elderflower Gin
‘Hand-made in Herefordshire’ reads the label on the bottle of this delicate, floral gin which has a strong whack of gin’s traditional juniper notes — not something that you can say of all the gins on this page. Elderflower is a lovely taste that seems perfect for the season as we head into Spring, and the fact that this comes in a pretty and hugely tasteful bottle is an extra bonus.
Tarquin’s Hibiscus & Lemon Gin
‘We wanted to create something to celebrate the English spring,’ says the eponymous Tarquin, aka Tarquin Leadbetter, who runs this small distillery near Padstow. It’s a beautifully elegant gin with a lovely balance of floral and fruity notes — and for something a bit different, it makes a fun fruity cocktail. 50ml of the gin with 25ml of lemon juice and a teaspoon of strawberry jam, shaken with ice, strained into a jam jar and topped with a splash of pink bubbly. Okay, perhaps this recipe is a bit more hen party than mother’s day, but it’s certainly different.
The Premium Gin Collection
Rather than sell ‘normal’ miniatures, Drinks by the Dram have their own bottling: wax-sealed 30ml containers, each with a different liquid inside. The benefit? They can be put into gift boxes like this one with 12 different gins included — and there are some crackers included. Old favourites like Conker , Bathtub and Tobermory gins rub shoulders with more avant-garde choices such as Copper Republic Rooibos & Grapefruit.
Slingsby’s Marmalade Gin, plus a jar of Gin Marmalade
Marmalade gins are have been around for a while, but the one which best channels the spirit of a slice of marmalade on toast is this: Slingsby’s of Harrogate Marmalade Gin. Now, they’re doubling down on that, selling a 50cl bottle in a gift set with a jar of their own marmalade, made with tangerine and the gin itself. Boozy gin is usually more afternoon tea than breakfast in bed, but on Mother’s Day anything goes.
Taste the gin rainbow
The various flavoured gins of Warner’s (formerly Warner Edwards) never disappoint (or at least, not yet), so their idea of a ‘Gin Rainbow’ gift set seems a perfect way to show that off — even if their maths is a little out (not that many people will be complaining that this ‘rainbow’ actually includes eight gins). Varieties include sloe, lemon balm, rhubarb and raspberry.
There’s also a ‘Pink by Nature’ set of three miniatures — the strawberry and rose is phenomenal.
£32 / £14 from warnersdistillery.com
Neroli gin
Neroli oil — otherwise known as orange blossom oil — is more commonly found in scented cosmetics rather than drinks, but in this gin from That Boutiquey Gin Company it shows a bit of versatility. It’s a delicately floral gin that retains a citrus note, and which packs a surprising punch from such a pretty bottle.
Best bottles of whisky for any budget to bring in the New Year in style
Father’s Day whisky: What to buy, from £23 to £2,000
Father's Day is coming up on June 17 – and if you're looking for a gift for a whisky-loving dad, we've
A drink for all seasons: Five superb wines you can pick up at the supermarket on the way home
Whether you've left it late to sort out a nice bottle for a romantic evening at home or just fancy
A drink for all seasons: Why the British are more romantic than anyone about wine
In his final column, our outgoing wine columnist Harry Eyres celebrates the romance and splendour of national wine scene — and
Why you should be drinking Rioja, the Spanish answer to Bordeaux
There is quality to be found at remarkably reasonable prices, discovers Harry Eyres
