If you really want to have the most fun you can with your clothes on, you have to see yourself as an insane alchemist who is willing to let loose with their potions and magical tinctures. Mini copper pot stills, a mortar and pestle, measuring jugs in various sizes and a keen sense of learning are all you need to produce a bespoke gin, with its own name, scent, flavour profile and bottle contouring.
After pounding botanicals such as angelica root, orange zest, juniper, coriander and cassia, followed by gently massaging cardamom, blackcurrant, fennel and pink peppercorn, I was left with a floral and herbal mixture that needed to be distilled on a hot flame.
This is the time when you savour Inverroche signature cocktails, take in the vast art collection at Ellerman House and enjoy gin-inspired canapés, while the majestic Atlantic Ocean crashes below.
You will not be able to help but feel in the upper echelon as you use words such as “distillate” (the liquid product condensed from vapour during the distillation process) and “nosing”, which is smelling a gin’s aroma.
Unleash your inner alchemist at the Inverroche Gin Academy
Join a gin masterclass and create your own one-of-a-kind blend
Image: Sbu Makwanazi
There is an endearing quality in being able to witness a craftsman showcase their skill and produce an intriguing item. This is why chefs’ kitchens, farm-to-table experiences, behind-the-scenes talks and brewery tours will always appeal to the masses.
The Inverroche Gin Academy at Ellerman House in Cape Town is no exception. More than 20 different botanicals are presented to guests, and you get to choose as many or as few of them as you desire.
I dug deep into my heritage as I scooped up the impepho (also known as liquorice plant or incense) as the most dominant botanical. Though this plant is associated with sacred rituals and hippies who use it to cleanse spaces of nasty auras, its earthy tone and smoky taste drew me to it.
The best part about this class is that there is a master gin distiller who facilitates the experience, always ready to advise why a certain botanical does not go well with a specific fruit that you were planning to blend.
If you really want to have the most fun you can with your clothes on, you have to see yourself as an insane alchemist who is willing to let loose with their potions and magical tinctures. Mini copper pot stills, a mortar and pestle, measuring jugs in various sizes and a keen sense of learning are all you need to produce a bespoke gin, with its own name, scent, flavour profile and bottle contouring.
After pounding botanicals such as angelica root, orange zest, juniper, coriander and cassia, followed by gently massaging cardamom, blackcurrant, fennel and pink peppercorn, I was left with a floral and herbal mixture that needed to be distilled on a hot flame.
This is the time when you savour Inverroche signature cocktails, take in the vast art collection at Ellerman House and enjoy gin-inspired canapés, while the majestic Atlantic Ocean crashes below.
You will not be able to help but feel in the upper echelon as you use words such as “distillate” (the liquid product condensed from vapour during the distillation process) and “nosing”, which is smelling a gin’s aroma.
Image: Sbu Makwanazi
Image: Sbu Makwanazi
To wrap up the nearly three-hour experience, you get to bottle and label your masterpiece, after coming up with an ingenious name for it. I went with “Abaphantsi”, which is a Xhosa word for “ancestors”, an ode to way too much impepho that I blended. I was also too generous with my pink peppercorns as my gin ended up looking like methylated spirits.
The Inverroche Gin Academy is also available in Johannesburg (Four Seasons Hotel, The Westcliff), Stillbaai (Inverroche Distillery) and KwaZulu-Natal (The Capital Zimbali). To book at the Ellerman Hotel, e-mail restaurant@ellerman.co.za or call 021-430-3200. The experience costs R1,500 per person.
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