ABOUT THE VILLAGE SPIRIT COLLECTIVE

OUR STORY


The Village Spirit Collective is owned and run by Ian Cox, who produces everything himself by hand in his micro-batch distillery - from crushing the botanicals and distilling to labelling and distribution.

OUR DISTILLERY


The distillery is based in the beautiful village of Hambledon in the Surrey Hills. We're next door to a lovely country village pub, Merry Harriers who offer luxury Shepherds Hut accommodation.

COMMUNITY SPIRIT


Ian produces unique craft spirits with the local community by gathering  together local “Ginfluencers®” who assist in the development of the gin by contributing to the flavour profile - a true Community Spirit.

OUR PROCESS


We use a vapour infusion process in our micro-distillery which features a bespoke state of the art copper column still. This method of gin production is certainly not the fastest but we believe it results in more subtle and nuanced flavours.

PRODUCTS


Our range includes Vann Lane Gin (a contemporary London Dry with citrus & spice botanicals), Haslemere Gin (a lighter Elderflower & Lemon gin), Limited Edition Seasonal Specials (such as Winter Spirit - Christmas in a glass!) and gin liqueurs.

SHOP ONLINE

SUBSCRIPTIONS


Take the hassle out of remembering to stock up on gin with our time and money-saving subscription plans. Setup a monthly, 2 monthly or 3 monthly delivery.  Alternatively, simply shop online for delivery or collection.

SUBSCRIBE

BAR HIRE


A staffed mobile bar for private and public events either using a converted horse box mobile bar, gazebo or indoor setup. Whether you have a wedding, special celebration, music festival or market, our gin bar serving our premium craft gin and cocktails is sure to keep your guests happy.

MOBILE BAR HIRE

EXPERIENCES


Learn about distillation and create your very own gin! Try 20 different botanicals, rate them and combine your favourites to blend your perfect gin and tonic. You can even purchase a bottle to take home. Great for gifts, special occasions, corporate events or just as a unique experience.

TOURS & TASTINGS

WEDDING FAVOURS


Need a unique little gift for your guests? Purchase discounted miniature gin liqueur bottles with your very own personalised label! Match your wedding colour palette and mood board with any label design and wording of your choice.

CONTACT US

BRANDED GIN


Impress your clients or customers with your very own branded gin. You can either white-label one of our gins, or go a step further and get your team together for a gin experience event and create your own blend! Great as corporate gifts or for serving at your bar, event or restaurant.

CASE STUDY

ACCREDITATION


We hold the Trade Mark Surrey Hills, a Mark of local provenance, high quality and sustainability. Promoting the very best of what Surrey has to offer and organisations who share the values of supporting the local environment.


We also have a five star food hygiene rating.

REUSE & REFILL


We try our best to minimise our environmental impact by using as little plastic as possible and reusing what we can, so if you are local to us and would like us to reuse your empty VSC bottles, drop it off at the distillery and we will sanitise and reuse it. We also ensure glasses at our events are reusable.

CONNECT WITH US ON INSTAGRAM

@beaginfluencer

GIN COCKTAILS

GIN MOJITO / SOUTHSIDE

with Vann Lane or Haslemere

This is a twist on a classic rum mojito - a refreshing drink great for parties and no shaker needed!


  1. Fill a tall glass with ice, pour in 50ml of Vann Lane or Haslemere Community Spirit.
  2. Pour over 25ml of fresh lemon juice and 25ml of lime and mint cordial.
  3. Top with soda water (or sparkling water).
  4. Garnish with a sprig of mint.

 

BRAMBLE

with Vann Lane Community Spirit

A perfect party cocktail that will bring them coming back for more...

 

  1. Fill a glass with ice.
  2. Pour in 50ml of Vann Lane Community Spirit gin and 25ml of lemon juice.
  3. Top with crushed ice and a few frozen blackberries.
  4. Slowly drizzle over 25ml of blackberry syrup or Crème de Mûre (if using Crème de Mûre - add 25ml sugar syrup).
  5. Stick in an eco-friendly straw or two and enjoy!

 

FRENCH 75

with Vann Lane or Haslemere

If you are a Prosecco or champagne fan as well as a gin fan you will love this taste of summer.

 

  1. In a shaker, combine ice, 50ml of Vann Lane or Haslemere Community Spirit, 15ml of fresh lemon juice and 15ml of sugar syrup
  2. Give it a good shake and pour into a champagne glass
  3. Slowly top with Prosecco or champagne (it will fizz so let it settle before topping it up)
  4. Garnish with a twist of lemon peel

 

THE PERFECT G&T
with our Community Spirit

It may sound obvious but if you want a classic G&T and want to taste the gin of your choice (which would be one of ours of course) without overpowering it with flavoured sweet tonics, it's worth taking a moment to get it right...

 

  1. If you want to be a bit fancy, line a copa glass (a burgundy wine glass is a good substitute)with sliced garnish (orange for Vann Lane Community Spirit and Lemon for Haslemere Community Spirit) and fill with ice.
  2. Pour in 50ml of gin and top with about 100ml of light premium tonic (avoiding any with artificial sweeteners). 
  3. Finish with a twist of lemon if using Haslemere Gin or orange if using Vann Lane. 
  4. Find a shady spot in the garden out of the sun and consider how lovely the world is.

 

NEGRONI
with Vann Lane Community Spirit

This is a cocktail for grown ups who secretly enjoyed the taste of cough syrup when they were younger. Consenting adults only.

 

  1. Fill your shaker with ice.
  2. Pour in equal measures of gin, Campari and sweet vermouth (we like the Punt E Mes).
  3. Shake till your hands get cold.
  4. Pour into a glass & garnish with a twist of orange peel.

 

RHUBARB BASIL SMASH
with Vann Lane Summer Spirit

This will be a favourite all summer... the bright green cocktail is definitely a showstopper and the fresh basil garnish pairs perfectly with the rhubarb.
  1. Bash a big handful of fresh basil leaves & 25ml of lemon juice in a cocktail shaker.
  2. Add a few cubes of ice.
  3. Pour over 50ml of Vann Lane Summer Spirit.
  4. Top with 15ml sugar syrup.
  5. Shake vigorously (after putting the top on obviously!)
  6. Pour the toxic green liquid into a cocktail glass and garnish with fresh basil. 

RASPBERRY GIN TONICA
with Vann Lane Community Spirit

Moreish and summery...
  1. Fill a copa glass with ice cubes (a burgundy wine glass is a good substitute).
  2. Pour in 50ml of gin (a small double or Sunday afternoon single)
  3. Add 25ml (a small shot) of Raspberry Liquer or Cordial.
  4. Add a dash of bitters – either orange bitters or Angostura
  5. Top up with Fevertree Light Tonic
  6. Garnish with a fresh or frozen raspberry 

ELDERFLOWER GIN TONICA
with Haslemere Community Spirit

Trust the Spanish to take something so quintessentially English and (dare we say) improve on it ? Their cunning idea is to take our gin & tonic and supercharge it. So they typically add one more booze ingredient, make sure the tonic is flavoured and add a flamboyant garnish. We’d be cross if they hadn’t done such a good job. Our favourite take on this little “cóctel” is as follows :

  1. Fill a copa glass with ice cubes (a burgundy wine glass is a good substitute).
  2. Pour in 50ml of gin (a small double or Sunday afternoon single)
  3. Add 25ml (a small shot) of Elderflower liqueur
  4. Add a dash of bitters – either orange bitters or Angostura
  5. Top up with Fevertree Mediterranean tonic
  6. Garnish with a slice of orange peel 

Be advised, they are very moreish.

TOM COLLINS
with Vann Lane Community Spirit

There’s some debate about the origins of the drink but credit is usually given to “Professor” Jerry Thomas who first wrote down the recipe in his terrifically bonkers book “How To Mix Drinks or The Bon Vivant’s Companion” first published in 1862. We have a copy here in the office which you’re welcome to borrow. In the book the recipe appears as follows:

"5 or 6 dashes of gum syrup, Juice of a small lemon, 1 large wine glass of gin, 2 or 3 lumps of ice

Shake well and strain into a large bar glass.  
Fill up the glass with plain soda water and imbibe while lively."

Now here at the Village Spirit Collective we love strong drinks – make no mistake – but even we consider using a large wine glass of gin in a single drink is over-stretching a bit. So without wanting to change the drink in any way, except perhaps so that you can drink a couple of them and still remember your mother’s name, we’d probably update the recipe as follows:
  1. Fill your shaker with ice
  2. Pour in 70mls of gin, 50mls of lemon juice, 25mls sugar syrup and shake well
  3. Fill a tall glass with ice and pour.  
  4. Top up with fizzy water and garnish with a lemon slice and maraschino cherry.

CLEMENTINE & GINGER FIZZ
with Vann Lane Winter Spirit

What could be better than Gin with Prosecco! There is a little bit of preparation involved in this one but definitely worth it...

Preparation
  1. Get some preserved ginger in syrup and fresh Clementine Juice from the supermarket.
  2. Gently simmer the Clementine juice until reduced by half.
  3. Cut small segments of sliced orange and stick a clove in each.
Cocktail
  1. Pour 25ml of gin into a champagne glass and about the same of the reduced Clementine Juice.
  2. Add a tablespoon of the ginger syrup from the preserved ginger jar and top up with Prosecco.
  3. Garnish with an orange and clove segment. 

GIN & GINGER
with Vann Lane Winter Spirit

It's all about creating a moreish festive drink to share with family & friends before you tuck in to the turkey. 

Start your Christmas celebrations with this indulgent but simple winter cocktail...
  1. Add a few cubes of ice into a copa glass.
  2. Pour over 35ml of Vann Lane Winter Spirit.
  3. Top with a premium light ginger ale.
  4. Garnish with an orange segment studded with cloves and a cinnamon stick. 

WHERE TO BUY OR TASTE OUR GIN

As well as buying online, you can pop in to our distillery at The Old Coal Yard, Hambledon, Surrey from 10am to 6pm Tuesday to Saturday or 10am to 2pm on Saturdays. Email us if you need something specific in case we're out doing deliveries.


Here are some of the places in our community where you can sip our gin at a bar or pick up a bottle.

If you would like to stock our gin, email us at hello@villagespiritcollective.com

The White Hart Witley
Merry Harriers
Hambledon Village Shop
Peppered Pear Pantry Godalming