We honestly didn't think that Mermaid Gin could be any more intoxicatingly gorgeous. The Isle of Wight Distillery proved us wrong by infusing it with summer strawberries and then filling it into the super cute 5cl miniatures in this gift pack. As we all know mermaids come from the ocean, and our seas are under threat from plastic. But the remarkable Mermaid Gin will not be adding to that because the Isle of Wight Distillery selects sustainable, recyclable and biodegradable materials for their packaging, and as such this environmentally friendly spirit is plastic free. It should come as no surprise that Mermaid Pink Gin from the Isle of Wight Distillery is so stunning, as these mythical creatures are renowned in folklore throughout the world for their beauty. The fish-scaled bottle received a 'Living Coral' (Pantone's Colour of the Year for 2019) makeover for this new edition. And the gin inside more than lives up to the promise of the packaging. It's crafted in a London Dry Gin style using ten botanicals: rock samphire (known as Mermaid's Kiss) handpicked from the chalk cliffs of the Isle of Wight, Boadicea hops from the local botanic garden, English coriander seeds from Sussex, juniper, organic lemon zest, angelica root, liquorice root, orris root, elderflower and grains of paradise, not to mention lots of good clean coastal air. It's then infused with sweet and aromatic summer strawberries from the Arreton Valley, which meld magnificently with the rich and zesty gin, liberally seasoned with refreshing salty sea spray and warming cracked black pepper. Mermaid Pink Gin makes a summery gin and tonic garnished with a fresh strawberry and a basil leaf, or an intriguing alternative to Pimm's served with ginger ale, mint leaves and slices of citrus fruit. The Isle of Wight Distillery is the vision of two friends, Xavier Baker and Conrad Gauntlett, with brewing and winemaking backgrounds. Together they create a range of small batch spirits. They laid down their first barrel of whisky in 2015, they've made a rum aged with oak from an old British Navy warship, and have recently revamped this 'mermazing' gin. No expense is spared by this boutique operation, as the bottle suggests. When distilling, the foreshots and feints (heads and tails) of the run are discarded to ensure the heart of the spirit is smooth and contains none of the nasty bits. For most gins the heart accounts for 80-90% of the run, so very little is lost. However, for Mermaid Gin the heart only comprises around 55%, ensuring the smoothest gin possible and citrus notes that sing as sweetly as a mermaid might to passing sailors.