They then carry them down, distil, bottle, box and distribute – all carried out almost a stone’s throw from where the ingredients were foraged. Sandy, the founder of King’s Hill has a ‘day job’ in the oil and gas industry in Scotland. King’s Hill gin was a hobby of Sandy’s that ‘escalated’, he says it’s a lot more exciting than his real job! He was inspired to start a gin brand after visiting Edinburgh Gin distillery tour, where they were talking about lots of botanicals that grow local to Sandy in the Pentland Hills. To taste you get the juniper and citrus, which leads to sweetness from the floral botanicals and a nice lingering aftertaste. The gin is smooth at 44% and doesn’t have a burn, it’s more ‘warming’. King’s Hill gin is a lighter contemporary style of gin and one to try if you don’t like traditional juniper heavy gins, or are just starting to explore the world of gin. Sandy was foraging for heather in the Pentland’s when first testing his gin. He marked it on the map and saw it was called King’s Hill, knowing there is usually a story behind these names he did a bit of research…. They found out that King’s Hill gin is named after a place that was part of a gamble between King Robert the Bruce and Sir William ‘The Crusader’ Sinclair. The story goes that King Robert and Sir William were in the area hunting a rare white stag. The King bet his Pentland estate against Sir William’s life that he would be first to capture this magnificent beast. However Sir William, with the help of his trusty dogs, won the bet. So in return, he named the spot where King Robert stood “King’s Hill”.

Heather has been instrumental in our wee gin company right from the start. She has always been huge support in everything we do here, a real guiding light. It’s only fitting that she officially joins the clan….look out for her behind the stall with her bouncy blonde curls and serious gin patter!The Pentland Still Company can be found at the foot of Edinburgh’s Pentland Hills (naturally), founded by Sandy Morrison in 2017. Sandy painstakingly and lovingly distils every bottle of King’s Hill Gin there, using locally foraged botanicals such as Rosehip, Heather, Gorse and Elderflower and the result is an amazingly smooth gin that is deep and full of character. Founded in 2017, King’s Hill Gin is the first spirit from The Pentland Still, which hints at more to come… And now, displayed in this gorgeous bottle, we love it even more. * Adds King’s Hill to shopping list*

The bottle features copper embellishments and blue tinted glass. (Image: Kings Hill Gin) Read More Related Articles We remain extremely busy here at HQ with our ‘real jobs’ and this delightful Juniper based adventure. Thankfully, chief of operations (my dad) is around daily to make sure this regal gin tap remains open and all deliveries are squared off in a timely manner, we couldn’t do it without him! Batch 7 will almost be entirely handled by chief of operations so keep a beady eye on who has made your very own bottle, each one is signed by the distiller. Shape – Finally the shape of the bottle with the slightly fluted end, a bit like a wine carafe, is also symbolic of my wife and I’s other love, wine! We have some seriously exciting announcements coming up soon that may well involve a fresh look to our signature London Dry…. It’s something truly special and I can’t wait to share with you faithful ginsmiths! He says “I noted the fragrance from the gorse flowers as something really quite special, as the year went on the gorse fragrance was replaced with an equally strong Heather fragrance. I was amazed at the array of beautiful ingredients right on our doorstep over-looking the capital. This is where my gin-producing journey was born!”The copper embellishment on the front that's bashed out with our logo is is representative of our hand bashed copper pot still “Marion” – named after my late grandmother. And what about the contents? King’s Hill gin represents the land where it is made with locally foraged botanicals – including gorse flower, heather, rose hips and elderflower – as well as classic gin botanicals – juniper, coriander and orris root. Aroma I enjoyed King’s Hill gin with FeverTree Mediterranean tonic and a slice of lemon. The lighter tonic works with the sweetness in the gin for a refreshing gin and tonic perfect for summer ? Sandy said: “Undoubtedly after one too many ales (or gins, who knows!) Sir William St Clair proclaimed that he had seen a white stag scampering around the King’s Pentland estate and that he would bet his own head that he could capture the animal before the King. The almost ‘diamond’ cut effect to the glass is a nod to our Gin’s royal heritage. This effect on the glass, especially in the sunlight, seems to sparkle like the jewels in a King’s crown might once have done.

The beautiful blue hue on our bottle fading out to clear is representative of the fresh, clear water we use from Glencorse reservoir in our Gin, the slopes of King’s Hill run all the way to the edge of this reservoir. We also tried the gin with Mediterrean tonic and the tonic opens up more herbaceous notes and balances the gin into a very refreshing gin and tonic. King’s Hill gin perfect serveEmbellishment –The copper embellishment on the front that’s bashed out with our logo is representative of our hand bashed copper pot still “Marion”– named after my late grandmother. Glassware –The almost ‘diamond’ cut effect to the glass is a nod to our Gin’s royal heritage. This effect on the glass, especially in the sunlight, seems to sparkle like the jewels in a King’s crown might once have done. Colour –The beautiful blue hue on our bottle fading out to clear is representative of the fresh, clear water we use from Glencorse reservoir in our Gin, the slopes of King’s Hill run all the way to the edge of this reservoir.