CORNISH BLUE FLAMINGO GIN CREATED AND PRODUCED MOTHER ’ S RUIN 1751
Where do I begin to explain how utterly exhausting the past two and a half years have been ?
Working full time as a Chief Petty Officer in the Royal Navy alongside setting up and running a small business has completely and utterly stripped me of who I thought I was , zapped all my strength yet pushed me to my limits by fuelling this determination to create and produce my own unique gin .
Gin has always been a favourite spirit of mine , yet with twenty years as a sailor you would think it would be Rum ? While sailing the seas and travelling the world I have been lucky enough to sample many amazing Gins and some not quite so good Gins .
Cornish Blue Flamingo is like no other gin ! Just Like the namesake , it is rare and unique while capturing attention with its stunning deep blue and personally designed etched bottles , while avoiding the need for plastic labels and inks . As a sailor that loves the ocean I pride myself on being as eco friendly as possible .
My business , Mother ’ s Ruin 1751 , is based in a Torpoint , SE Cornwall . I also live in Torpoint town which has a fantastic community spirit and have to say , they have supported me in my venture wholeheartedly . From the initial creation of the wooden Gin Flights that I used to create and sell at craft fairs , to the selling and distribution of many brands of small batch local gins to go alongside the Gin Flights .
From the moment I had started they had always supported and believed in my business . I was fortunate to be asked to create my Gin Flights for a well-known Plymouth Gin Room , following a Gin distiller approaching me to create bespoke boards for their very own Gin ! Remarkably this really took off and after passing the relevant licences , I to started retailing alcohol where I became introduced into the artisan world of mainly Cornish Gins to sell alongside my Cornish Gin Flights , and people loved them !
My next venture was to create an event that would be like no other , I had named it “ Gins & Fins ”. It was an eco-friendly Gin festival held in the Plymouth Marine Aquarium in February 2020 . Over 1000 attendees enjoyed 22 gin distillers with sampling , entertainment , music and live action human mermaids swimming in the aquarium tanks ! This helped raise much needed funds for the Ocean Conservation Project . Unfortunately , a week later we went into a nationwide lockdown . This , however , did not deter me !
How do you keep a small business going which relies on events to sell its products during a lockdown ? Well , the team and I put our heads together and decided to create my very own “ home gin club ”, which is a non-subscription Gin & Rum tasting box . We had also created a “ ring 4 your gin ” delivery service on my newly upgraded website , that was an unexpected hit ! With people in lockdown wanting to sample and try more Gins than ever ! Mother ’ s Ruin 1751 kept ticking over nicely thanks to all the local support , and I cannot thank them enough .
28 | Rural Life