How two gin lovers started crafting organic Yorkshire gin

Two gin fans have taken their love of the spirit to the next level, producing one of West Yorkshire’s most delicious new tipples.
Victoria and Gary Ford crafted Forged in Wakefield Gin while continuing to work their busy day job.Victoria and Gary Ford crafted Forged in Wakefield Gin while continuing to work their busy day job.
Victoria and Gary Ford crafted Forged in Wakefield Gin while continuing to work their busy day job.

Victoria and Gary Ford’s dream of launching an organic and vegan certified gin became a reality in January 2019. While continuing to work their busy day jobs they crafted Forged in Wakefield Gin. This year they have set their sights on turning Forged in Wakefield into a full-time occupation.

Victoria, a Nursing Sister on the Gastroenterology ward at Pinderfields Hospital, and Gary, an IT architect, spent three years learning how to distil gin before launching the company’s first London Dry and Cherry Blossom gins: 12 months on, the company boasts a delicious range of bespoke spirits made right here in Yorkshire.

"We only use the 'one shot' method, which means we never dilute the gin with spirit that hasn’t been distilled," explains Gary. "We also stick to the finest organic and natural ingredients, which mean we produce some of the purest gin that can be made. It's fair to say that it's the envy of most mainstream producers who don't use this method: it is an extremely labour-intensive process and more expensive, but it’s well worth it for the difference in taste."

The Fords are now hoping to go full-time with the business.The Fords are now hoping to go full-time with the business.
The Fords are now hoping to go full-time with the business.

Forged in Wakefield, who are sponsoring this year’s Oliver Awards, offer a number of fascinating flavoured gins, from the Spiced Orange, which blends allspice, cloves, ginger, cinnamon, nutmeg and ginger to complement the brightness of the orange, and Passionfruit gin to Strawberry and Cinnamon, and Rhubarb and Ginger combinations, made from fruit from the Rhubarb Triangle right on their doorstep: the most popular of the gin’s are their Original London Dry and Sherbet Lemon, with its zesty yet sweet flavour profile.

The resulting flavours lend themselves to a number of tasty cocktail creations which can be found at forgedinwakefield.com, including a gin-based alternative to the strawberry daiquiri, Lemon Gumdrop and Bramble Surprise, which blends The Original Gin with crème de mûre, sugar syrup and lime puree.

You can try Forged in Wakefield gins for yourself at a number of food festivals during 2020, including Leeds Food & Drink Festival, Harrogate Food & Drink Festival in May, Ilkley Food & Drink Festival in June and the Great British Food Festival at Harewood House; it’s also served in bars and restaurants throughout the region.

"We're really proud of what we've achieved so far and we're looking forward to showing even more people our fantastic range of gins this year," adds Gary. "If we're able to give up our day jobs and make gin full-time, we really will be living the dream."

See the full range of organic luxury gins and shop online at www.forgedinwakefield.com