DORSET'S first gin distillery has scooped gold in the best drinks product of the year category at the Dorset Magazine Food, Drink and Farming Awards 2015.

This is the third accolade the Bournemouth-based company has won since it began selling its Dorset Dry Gin six months ago, having been awarded gold in the wines, spirits and liqueurs category in the 2015 Taste of the West Awards, and two stars in the 2015 Great Taste Awards; the acknowledged benchmark for fine food and drink.

Rupert Holloway, head conkerer at Conker Spirit, said: “We’ve won an award every couple of months since we launched our Dorset Dry in April, which is so encouraging, given our infancy! It’s such a compliment to get the public’s vote to win our most recent award, which celebrates the food, drink and farming heroes of Dorset.

“It’s great to be recognised by the Taste of the West and Great Taste Awards for the efforts we have gone to in creating our unique premium gin. From hand foraging the gorse flowers to each small batch distillation run, we focus on quality without the shortcuts.”

Conker Spirit is stocked throughout Mark Hix’s bars and restaurants, and is now the only gin served down at Hugh Fearnley-Whittingstall’s River Cottage HQ.

Conker Spirit Dorset Dry Gin is made from British wheat spirit, New Forest Spring Water and ten select botanicals including the fresh Dorset notes of elderberries, samphire and handpicked gorse flowers.

Prices start at £35 a bottle, stockists include wine shops, delis and farm shops across Dorset, Hampshire and parts of London and online at masterofmalt.com. For more information, visit conkerspirit.co.uk.