Plenty of distilleries talk about innovation. With Gyre & Gimble, you can actually see what that means in the bottles.
The Norfolk distillery has built its identity around sustainability, experimentation and zero-waste thinking, but without making sustainability feel like the worthy bit you're supposed to admire before getting to the interesting part.
Instead, it becomes part of the creative process.
A discarded ingredient can become the starting point for another spirit. Norfolk hedgerows can provide sloes, blackberries, nettles and rosehips. A classic gin can be pushed deliberately towards juniper. Salt can become part of the character of a vodka.
And sometimes a gin can end up tasting remarkably like a port.
This is a distillery that seems happiest when asking what else a spirit could be.
When waste becomes an ingredient
Perhaps the clearest example of Gyre & Gimble's approach is its Pinot Noir Gin.
Rather than treating the grape skins and other material left behind during winemaking as something to discard, Gyre & Gimble has used Pinot Noir pomace from Norfolk vineyards to create an extraordinarily distinctive limited-edition gin.
The result has rich notes of jam, stone fruits and raisins – sufficiently unusual that Gyre & Gimble describes it as something of a port in disguise.
It's a clever idea, but more importantly it demonstrates what the distillery means when it talks about sustainability.
Instead of sustainability being separate from flavour, one creates the other.
Norfolk ingredients without a predictable Norfolk gin
Gyre & Gimble's Norfolk connection appears throughout its spirits, but not always in the same way.
Its Hedgerow & Sloe Gin draws upon fresh sloes, blackberries, nettles and rosehips picked from Norfolk hedgerows, creating a rich, dark-fruited expression of the county's countryside.
Elsewhere the approach can be quite different.
Double Juniper Gin puts juniper firmly back at the centre of the glass, supported by bright citrus and a subtle black-pepper finish.
Across the wider collection, you'll find coastal influences, vodka, experimental releases and limited-edition spirits alongside more familiar styles of gin.
There isn't really a Gyre & Gimble formula.
And that's rather the point.
Who is behind Gyre & Gimble?
Gyre & Gimble is led by co-founders Craig Allison and Rory Smith.
Craig looks after the operational side of the business, while Rory is Gyre & Gimble's Master Distiller, responsible for developing and distilling its spirits.
Together they have developed a Norfolk drinks business that extends beyond the distillery itself, including Gyre & Gimble Stores in Norwich's Royal Arcade, where the company also operates its Gin Academy.
An award-winning Norfolk distillery
Gyre & Gimble's willingness to do things differently hasn't gone unnoticed.
The distillery was named IWSC Gin Producer of the Year in 2023, recognition that puts considerably more substance behind the phrase award-winning than simply displaying a collection of medals.
It's an impressive achievement for a Norfolk distillery whose range is deliberately prepared to move between classic gin-making and much more experimental territory.
Where can I buy Gyre & Gimble spirits?
You can buy Gyre & Gimble spirits from The Norfolk Deli in Hunstanton, where we stock the full range alongside drinks from independent producers across Norfolk.
You can also order Gyre & Gimble through our online shop for UK delivery.
Gyre & Gimble has its own shop in Norwich's Royal Arcade, but if you're looking for its spirits on the North Norfolk coast, visiting Hunstanton or want to order Gyre & Gimble alongside other Norfolk food and drink, you'll find our current selection above.
