Amalfi lemons create an award-winning tipple from Tyrone
Lemons picked on Italy’s picturesque Amalfi coast have been blended by Wild Atlantic Distillery in Tyrone into a premium Irish vodka loved by expert judges in a prestigious international awards.
Created by brothers-in-law Jim Nash and Brian Ashe at their Wild Atlantic Distillery, located near Castlederg, the unique flavour of their Amalfi Lemon Vodka gained a silver medal in the recent World Vodka Awards.
The small distillery, in addition, gained another silver medal in the awards for its Premium Irish Vodka and a double gold medal for the Best Irish Flavoured Gin in the World Gin Awards.
The World Vodka Awards and others for the industry are held annually by the World Drinks organisation in Britain to recognise and promote the best international vodkas in taste and style for consumers worldwide.
“We are absolutely thrilled to receive these important accolades for the quality of our gin, our initial product, and the vodkas,” says Jim Nash. “They are a marvellous endorsement by experts of our focus on creating premium products that offer consumers different tastes. This is especially true of our Amalfi lemon flavoured vodka which is in line with the global trend towards premium products.
“Winning double gold for our gin as the Best Flavoured Irish for the second year in row is another immensely encouraging development for the business,” adds Jim.
The brothers-in-law, who both spent many years working abroad, came to Northern Ireland in 2019 determined to revive distilling in the North West, once the home of one of the island’s biggest and most successful whiskey distillers. The two entrepreneurs have since successfully realised a long-held dream of reviving whiskey with the launch last year of the IslandMen single malt, a new whiskey which has already won widespread acclaim.
The purpose-built distillery, constructed on land owned by Brian, also features a visitor centre, a traditional New York-style bar, a gin school, a programme of tours and cocktail master classes.
The spirits are all distilled in a handmade copper pot still using a combination of traditional and modern skills to produce exceptional artisan products.