Last week, I took a closer look at Inverroche as a brand, a contributor to sustainable practices and a pioneer not only in locally handcrafted gin, but rum and more recently, liqueurs. Below we discover the team behind the creation of Inverroche as a local favourite.

Ex-deputy mayor of Stilbaai and pioneer in the local craft gin industry, Lorna Scott and the team at Inverroche, are again at the forefront of a spirit category. The journey began when Lorna, her Botanist friend and his wife endeavoured down a curious path of discovering; the local fynbos – a plant kingdom indigenous to the Cape region, which later gave Inverroche’s gins its unique characteristics and made it the celebrated brand it is today. Inverroche has become a brand synonymous with festivity!

The distillery, headed by Mike Scott, is situated on the Laurenskirk Estate off the Old Riversdale Road in Still Bay. The venue is not only the birthplace of locally handcrafted gin but offers an intimate space with activities which include distillery tours, tastings and interactive make-your-own-gin or rum experiences. The family chose the name of the distillery to pay homage to the Scott ancestry.

The name Inverroche is made up of the Scottish word ‘Inver’ (confluence of water) and the French Word ‘Roche’ (Rock or Stone) – the very elements which make up the perfect conditions that have brought South Africans, and the world: Inverroche Gin.

The team is so passionate about sustainability, that most of the Fynbos used are grown on the farm. Any additional botanicals are sourced from sustainable sources.

For our next venue-venture, we moseyed on over to a literal hole-in-the-wall, tucked away in a former warehouse, Art of Duplicity. An experience like one from an old school mafia movie. A knock on an unmarked door, an exchange of a secret password and a winding path through what seems to be a labyrinth back in time. Peanut shells crackle under your feet as you approach the bar, the devotee’s to the speakeasy revival sit sipping at their elixirs and master-of-ceremonies; Brent Perremore is orchestrating a masterpiece.

Marmalade Gin Liqueur

The team at Inverroche had a look at their organic waste which included whole sweet Cape oranges, a previously wasted byproduct of the production of the Inverroche Gin Amber (which also makes up the base for the Marmalade Liqueur), and with sustainable initiatives in mind these oranges were used to intensify the marmalade-esque Liqueur and further enhance the natural sweetness, citrus elements, spices and coastal fynbos. Prepare yourself to experience pure bliss, as pure as bliss could possibly get when you have the power to pour sunshine into a glass. Expect Orange blossom, rooibos tea and buttered hot cross buns to fill the immediate air between your nasal cavity and the glass; followed by fruity juniper, buttered toast and candied oranges to fully coat your tongue and leave you with a warm cinnamon, raisin and subtle spice afterglow.

We tasted the Marmalade liqueur neat, over ice and of course the whole reason we were there in the first place – to celebrate not only Inverroche’s latest triumph but some of the best cocktails created by the most esteemed mixologists. Brent prepared a cocktail he calls the Dark Arts.

Dark Arts

37.5ml Inverroche Gin Amber

25ml Inverroche Marmalade Gin Liqueur

5ml Maraschino

5ml Lemon Juice

12.5ml Simple Syrup

25ml Deep Dark & Twisted coffee blend

Shaken, fine strained over cubed ice and garnished with a lemon zest  

Next week we look at the last in the trilogy of handcrafted liqueur by Inverroche, I will also be revealing which of the two venues mentioned above and before will have the final of the liqueurs available and how they interpreted the flavour captured in the bottle.

Art of Duplicity
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