Lowveld - Dec 2019

shop is steadily growing. We have
an excellent boutique wine and
champagne selection and a few of
the well-known local beers are also
available, and we intend on having
wine and gin on tap soon. We also
have a large variety of craft spirits.”
Indeed, the array of colours,
beautifully designed labels and
eclectic bottles, mixed with the
botanicals, fruits and spices on
display almost make you feel as if you
have wandered into a mysterious
perfume shop, an Aladdin’s cave of
pretty treasures filled with jars and
‘I love to
experiment
with the
different
flavours, mixing
the essence of
this with a hint
of that’
and loves a sprig of rosemary and slice of orange or grapefruit, blueberry with
pimento is deliciously enhanced by thyme and a handful of fresh figs, and the
strawberry with wild basil requires nothing more than fresh strawberries and
perhaps a sliver or two of cucumber,” says Tanya. “Gin is so versatile, it can be
savoury or sweet, and the mixer you choose also comes into play as yet another
element. The current favourite is peach lemonade, which flies out of the shop.
Everyone loves the pink tonic as well.”
For the tee-totallers there’s Tanya’s popular tonic cordial, handmade with fruit
and spices, and a much-loved favourite, Dollies Gin Jam, is something you really
want to get hold of. There is nothing quite like hot-buttered toast slathered in
this delightfully decadent blueberry and strawberry gin-infused preserve. Or
scones, with lashings of cream and a healthy dollop of jam, if that’s more your
thing.
While you would have thought the craft gin fad would have moved on by now,
it’s very clear it’s here to stay. It seems to grow and change, adapt and transform
constantly. Just when you think it’s all been done, a new deep blue or pretty
pink, beautifully bottled, high-end brand appears. Gin certainly has come a long
way since its early days of being known as “mother’s ruin”, and it’s certainly stood
the test of time.
So whether you like it with a sprig of seaweed and scatter of salt flakes, or
straight up, shaken not stirred, here’s to gin, and to Gin & Co. Tanya and her team
are simply fabulous, but fair warning - once you have walked in those doors,
you’ll find you may never want to leave.
bottles of exotic tastes and smells.
“Gin is a wonderful thing,” Tanya
says. “There is just so much you
can do with it, from adding flavour
combinations to the gin itself, not
to mention the accompaniments
which you garnish it with, from bay
leaves, peppercorns and rosemary,
to strawberries, blueberries and the
traditional cucumber. They are now
experimenting with tomato and sea
salt - imagine that combination!”
Yum. That sounds like something any
self-respecting gin lover would quaff
in a heartbeat. “I love to experiment
with the different flavours, mixing the
essence of this with a hint of that and
testing to see which flavours marry
well and which just don’t belong
together. For example, the Dollie
Rooibos is paired with lemongrass
Tanya and Hylton Cruse
December 2019 Get It Lowveld 17