Lancashire-based businesses Fairham Distillery and Secret Industries team up to create a special pink gin release.
Fairham Distillery’s Ellis McKeown, 28, and Liam Stemson, 27, the owners and distillers who have created the multi-award-winning Fairham Gin, have launched Limited Edition Vol.2, their expression of a pink gin that is a first for the distillery.
Liam says, “We’ve gone slightly off-brand with this special limited release and created a coloured gin that has an all-natural pink hue to it as opposed to our usual clear gin.”
The Fairham pair have taken a traditionally distilled classic juniper-forward gin and combined it with fresh British raspberry and strawberry, along with the addition of aromatic lychee.
“The natural pink hue comes from the process of resting a traditionally distilled gin with strawberry, raspberry and lychee. This rests in a barrel before being filtered and then bottled in its own specially designed artwork,” Liam continues.
For those not familiar with the Limited Edition range by Fairham Gin, they use these releases to showcase the work of local artists on the front cover of the bottle, and for Limited Edition Vol.2 the distillery have teamed up with Tim Bridges, a Preston-based graphic designer.
Tim says, “I was really excited when asked to do this project. To work with someone local that produces a national award-winning product is amazing. It’s also flattering and a little terrifying all rolled into one!”
Tim Bridges, who is also known by his business name; Secret Industries, founded his graphic design business in 2010 initially starting out as hobby. Since 2018, Tim has focused his efforts on graphic design and has turned his creative output into a full-time role working on logos, brand identity and illustrative work for small Northern businesses.
“I love the bold, simple and clean logos of Cruz Novillo, but the grit and texture of designers like Chris Ashworth. I love pop art, punk fanzines, comic books and traditional American tattoo art. You blend all those together and you get Secret Industries: simple illustrations, bold outlines, strong typography, bright colours, repeat patterns and dirty textures.”
Tim Bridges, Secret Industries
Pink is the obvious feature of this new gin release, with the two business working together to create a piece of artwork that would represent not only the botanicals used but also the colour of the liquid.
Tim explains, “We really wanted to highlight the fact that this was going to be Fairhams first coloured gin, so most of my design decisions were made with that in mind. I actually love working with a colour like pink, there’s an opportunity to do something really bold and loud. What I found really rewarding was that Ellis and Liam were insistent that it should feel like a piece of Secret Industries artwork: their bottle just happened to be the canvas.”
“I pitched four initial ideas, and they selected this one because they felt it was the best reflection of my work. It’s still really refreshing to work with people that are happy to put their trust and confidence in your personal style and approach.”
Limited Edition Vol.2 is the second limited release by Fairham Distillery, following on from their collaboration on Limited Edition Vol.1 with Penwortham-based illustrator Georgia-Maia in 2022.
Ellis says, “Our limited range is just as exciting for us as it is for our customers. As well as pushing ourselves out of the comfort zone of our core range, we love the process of looking for and working with different artists. It’s an extremely creative way to mix two types of businesses together and it was a joy to see Tim perfectly create a design dedicated to Limited Edition Vol.2.”
A Penwortham distilled gin with a Preston-based design is the perfect way to celebrate the creativity and diversity coming out of Lancashire.
Tim says, “I believe The North, and Lancashire in particular, can be as creatively and culturally significant as places like London and Bristol. I believe that starts with forming a solid creative community. Any small independent business can be considered creative, and we should all be looking for opportunities to collaborate. When we do work together, it’s helps forge that sense of community, and that benefits everyone.”
The pink polka design and gin won’t be around for long, with the release only being made available for a limited time only. Order yours here!
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ochre edition 70cl£36.00 -
signature edition 70cl£36.00
