You might be familiar with Durham Distillery for their incredible range of gins, but did you know they do gin making classes? That’s right, you can spend a couple of hours in the distillery making your very own bottle to take away with expert help!
If that sounds like it might be up your street, you’ll love this post. Me and my mum were invited into the distillery to give the gin making a go, so I’ll give you all the details you need to know and a little review of our time.
What is Durham Distillery?
Durham Distillery is an urban distillery in the heart of Durham city, inspired by the Bourbon distilleries in college towns of America’s east coast. The small batch craft distillery was founded in 2014 by Jon Chadwick, with a promise of creating good honest spirits that are packed full of passion and sense of place. After initially launching with their signature Durham gin, they now produce a small line of gins, alongside vodka and whisky.
In 2023, Durham Distillery opened the doors of their new location in Durham’s Prince Bishops, complete with a shop where you purchase all of their sensational drinks. And not only that, but you can join them for cocktail making and gin making classes!
Where is Durham Distillery?
You can find Durham Distillery and their gin making classes at Prince Bishops Place, 30-31 High Street, Durham, DH1 3UL. The venue and shop are open from 10am-4:30pm from Wednesday to Sunday.
Gin making class review
We arrived at the distillery for our booked time slot and were shown down the stairs into the bar area, where all of the little stills were set up. We were immediately welcomed in, offered a drink (I had the Durham Distillery mango gin and lemonade) and snacks bought from the local market. It was a really relaxed and friendly way to kick off, especially as we’re both complete beginners.
We were led by Jon Chadwick himself, who was a total gin fountain of knowledge. Any question we had, he knew the answer straight away, and he definitely prides himself on being an expert. He talked us through the history of Durham Distillery and the process of making your own gin, starting with the flavour profile. We learned about the gin base and then how to balance flavours to get our final bottles exactly as we liked. Then it was time to choose our ingredients!
All of the options were laid out in a way that made them easy to see and grouped by various categories, such as citrus and floral. We were given a little cup to fill with our base and fun flavours. I went for juniper and coriander to get my gin base, then pear, elderflower, lime peel and orris for a sweet, fruity taste. My mum went all out to pack a punch with lemon peel, lime peel, grapefruit, mango, pink peppercorns and chilli! We took these back over to our stills and emptied the contents in to get the distilling process going.
I hadn’t realised quite how labour intensive making gin from scratch could be. We learned all about cutting the heads off our gin, so we watched the first few drops trickle out, taste them, then decide whether the quality was right for the final product. We also learned about the cooling process and managing the temperature of the still to get the final gin just right. It’s a real science!
My distilling got off to a flying start and my gin was trickling out at some pace. I cut the heads and continued to make my delicious spirit. My mum had a little trouble with her still and it seemed to have a mind of its own, but once it reached the right temperature, she was away.
My gin was the first to be distilled, so then it was time to test the alcohol levels. Jon showed us the alcohol spirit meter method, which involved pouring the pure gin into a cylinder and spinning the spirit meter inside. The spirit meter floated up to the printed line depending on the percentage of alcohol. Mine was around 75% to start, but this was before being diluted.
To dilute, we simply kept adding water and testing to see the alcohol levels. This took a little bit of time as I wanted it spot on and I nailed it! Once it hit around 40% volume, it was ready to be bottled up and labelled.
I really enjoyed the gin making class and learned so much throughout the process. It was great to see how the whole thing works from start to finish, and we were both pretty chuffed with ourselves. The only thing I would change about mine is less elderflower and more pear, as it came through quite floral rather than sweet and fruity. But I could sit there and make up flavour combinations all day – that was definitely my favourite part.
It would be a great thing to do as a group, maybe for a hen do or just for something different to do with your friends in Durham city centre. It would also be fab for couples and might even bring out some competitive spirit. As I mentioned, both me and my mum were total beginners to gin making, and we both managed to make some delicious drinks, thanks to the help of Jon and co.
If you fancy booking your gin making class, click here, and be sure to check out the cocktail classes too.
What’s in the Durham Distillery shop?
After you’ve finished your gin making class, make sure you head back upstairs for a look in the shop. Of course, the distillery sells their own gin, vodka and whisky in a range of sizes and in little sets, but they also stock the mixers you might need too. This includes ginger ale, lemonade and a variety of flavoured tonic waters. You’ll also be able to find other local products, such as South Durham Honey, Durham Coffee and ales from the Durham Brewery. It’s a little treasure trove of treats that you’ll love browsing!
Whether you want to book a class or treat yourself to a new tipple, make sure you go and check out Durham Distillery. And why not follow them on Instagram to get updates about their city centre venue? They’re going to be launching all kinds of themed nights, so keep your diary free!
This gin making class was gifted to me in exchange for a review. All opinions are my own.