Very curious advertising and a brand new website for our cucumber lovely.

Check it out here http://www.hendricksgin.com

Hendrick’s Gin have now got the US covered with the appointment of Jon Santer as Hendrick’s Brand Ambassador. Based in San Francisco Jon will be reponsible for the West Coast of the United States of America whilst Jim Ryan in New York has responsibility for the East Coast.

To great fanfare and general hilarity the Hendrick’s Carriage of Curiosities made its final stop in London’s Manchester Square. We’re delighted to report that Londoners maintained the already high standards of producing curious and unusual objects and were rewarded with vast quantities of Hendrick’s and Tonic. Carriage Host Louis Xavier Smith, Professor David Piper and Assistant of the Absurd, Suzanne Preston, entertained visitors as they arrived. 

The Hendrick’s Horseless Carriage of Curiosities has begun the final leg of its journey to deliver a delightful experience to Londoners. The Carriage will be at Manchester Square (behind Selfridges) from the 1st to the 4th of October and Hendrick’s is inviting lovers of the peculiar to get their curiosities out of the attic and bring them along to join other oddities in the collection. In return donors will be presented with a delicious Hendrick’s Gin and Tonic, in itself a most curious creation.

At night the Carriage is transformed by an ingenious system of pulleys and levers into a private salon and dining room. The “GRAND DEGU-STATION” menu prepared by Bompas & Parr, culinary creatives and jelly mongers, will be served, accompanied by Hendrick’s cocktails.

Collectors who choose to register their curiosity in advance by uploading a photograph of it with a curious caption at www.hendricksgin.com/carriage will be in with the chance of winning one of eight places at dinner every night. All aboard!

This summer Hendrick’s Gin is promoting the return of previously banned misshapen fruits and vegetables to shop shelves (think curvy cucumbers, awkward apricots, misfit melons, bashed berries!) with a delicious new range of cocktails perfect for a sunny afternoon. In an effort to stamp out the obsession with conformity Hendrick’s Gin is single-handedly spearheading the mission to see aesthetically challenged fruit and vegetables brought back with The Hendrick’s Gin Charter for the Legalisation of Forgotten Fruits (and vegetables).

To show their support for the Charter, people are invited to submit evidence of their own homegrown produce via the Facebook group – The Hendrick’s Gin Charter for the Legslisation of Forgotten Fruits. The best endeavours will be rewarded with Hendrick’s Gin bounty, including bottles of the exquisite elixir and even the opportunity to attend an exclusive secret gathering for Hendrick’s aficionados.

Glen Hooper, first signatory to the Charter ,has worked with Hendrick’s Brand Ambassador Louis Xavier Lewis-Smith to develop a selection of fantastic summer cocktails made with the juniper and cucumber elixir including the Hendrick’s Gin Garden:

Glass: highball
Ice: cubed
Garnish: cucumber spiral

• 50ml Hendrick’s Gin
• 15ml elderflower cordial
• 100ml pressed apple juice
• Top with lemonade

Method: Place the cucumber spiral within a highball glass. Gently pour in the Hendrick’s Gin, followed by the elderflower cordial and pressed apple juice. Top with lemonade

Following on from the success of the Edinburgh Festival’s Foodies these feasts for lovers of all things food and drink are now bursting out all over. If you fancy seeing top chefs from the best restaurants in action and the chance to tempt your taste buds with the most delicious food and drink, then Foodies is the event for you. Sip champagne in the Veuve Cliquot tent. Try a sushi, chocolate, cheese or champagne masterclass and buy fresh ingredients in the local producers market. For budding young chefs there is a chance to learn to cook in the Cooking with Kids masterclass. And Gintime will be there hosting a series of Gin Tutored Tastings. We’ll be going in depth on some top Gintime brands such as Bulldog, Hendricks, Martin Miller’s, Plymouth, Tanqueray, Tanqueray 10 and The London Gin. There will also be fantastic rum and whisky tastings hosted by industry experts. All the demonstrations, sampling and Master Classes are free and we’ve teamed up with Foodies to do a special 2 for 1 on entry to Foodies Festivals. All you need to do is call Seetickets on 0871 230 7144 and quote Foodies-2-for1-ticket offer.

The next Foodies Festivals are:

Brighton – 16th and 17th May
Hampton Court Palace, London – 23, 24 and 25 th May
Glasgow – 18th and 19th July
Edinburgh: 22nd and 23rd August

For detailed information on events in your area check out http://www.foodiesfestival.com/

Here’s something really unusual – a Hendrick’s G and T that you breathe in at the Alcoholic Architecture installation in London’s Newburgh Quarter close to Carnaby Street. The walk in cloud of breathable cocktail is made with Hendrick’s and tonic water using the same technology as Anthony Gormley’s Blind Light at the Hayward Gallery. Visitors don protective suits and enter an amazing space dressed as the inside of a cocktail with massive straws and a soundscape created by sound artist Douglas Murphy. Dr. James Kneale of UCL provides historical background to Alcoholic Architecture: “Gin has enjoyed periods of riotous popularity in England. In 1743 at the height of the gin craze the average person consumed 10 litres of gin each year. The Newburgh Quarter, the area in which the installation is being held, has strong historical associations with alcohol”.

Alcoholic Architecture is the brainchild of Bompas & Parr whose work operates in the space between food and architecture. They’ve done projects with leading architects including Lord Foster, Will Alsop and Rogers Stirk Harbour + Partners to design jelly moulds. Heston Blumenthal is currently using Bompas & Parr’s expertise for his television series Feast and Mark Ronson asked Bompas & Parr to create a glow-in-the-dark dessert chamber for his most recent Birthday.

Alcoholic Architecture is open on the 17th, 18th, 23rd, 24th and 25th April with timed entry at 7pm, 8pm ,and 9pm. Tickets are available from www.jellymongers.co.uk and it takes place at 2 Ganton Street, W1F 7QL