03 Oct 2014
Bottoms up: Heatherwick’s Bombay Sapphire Distillery ready to go
BY Katie Buckley
Internationally renowned gin brand, Bombay Sapphire, is set to open up its new home, a distillery and visitor centre in Laverstock, Hampshire.
Opening its doors on 1 October, the Laverstock Mill has been completely renovated and fitted out for its new purpose of housing Bombay Sapphire’s headquarters and distillery. With a full range of behind the scenes visitor experiences, the new site is to showcase the story behind Bombay Sapphire, its craftsmanship and heritage as a brand.
Heatherwick Studio came up with the masterplan for the project, and thus transformed the Grade II listed paper mill into a dedicated distillery and centre.
Having worked on the entire site, Thomas Heatherwick has truly left his mark in the two intertwining Glasshouses, housing all ten of the botanicals infused in Bombay Sapphire gin. Both Glasshouses are different temperatures, allowing the exotic plants to thrive in their simulated native environments and guests to experience them all year round.
Laverstock Mill has several other enticing strings to add to its bow, boasting tours of the site which include:
- The aforementioned Glasshouses
- The ‘Botanical Dry Room’ - displaying the harvested ingredients ready for use, with interactive site maps allowing visitors to pick their favourites - leading to a personalised cocktail choice at the end of the tour
- The ‘Darkin Still House’ - where guests will be talked through the intense Vapour Infusion distillation process the spirit undergoes
- A ‘Heritage Room’ telling the tale Laverstock Mill as a site, and its illustrious past
- A Gin Shop
- ‘The Empire Room,’ which can be used as a VIP event space
- And finally, ‘The Gallery’ gives visitors an insight into Bombay Sapphire, its history, recipe, origins and so on. Cocktail and Gin and Tonic workshops will also be held in this space
Gin tours are no longer new to the attractions market, with Beefeater Gin recently opening a visitor experience in London. Other distilleries offering tours include Sipsmith’s, a further London-based purveyor of fine spirits, and COLD - the City of London Distillery to name a few.
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