Gin has fast become one of the nation’s most popular alcoholic drinks.
Loved by millennials, baby boomers and everyone in between, the spirit is now front and centre at most bars, pubs and alcohol retailers – with flavoured varieties seeing a rise in popularity in recent years.
With gin seemingly having a cultural moment, many brands are looking for ways to jump on the craze and a release by John Lewis & Partners has sparked social media users into a frenzied debate.
The Yvonne Ellen Gin Teapot is available for £45 and is a white teapot decorated with blue polka dots.
What is causing all of the controversy is the text face which reads “Gin” and is printed on the front of the teapot.
Signalling to some to be reminiscent of the branding of other drinks like Prosecco which became associated with a personality type in recent years and received countless associated merchandise as a result, Reddit users took to the comments to offer some colourful opinions.
One said: "Lol I'm soooo quirky! Gin! Hahahahahaha!"
A second commented: “As an unrepentant gin drinker, I find this to be a disgusting and unforgivable appropriation of my culture.”
Another user wrote: “Can't stand people who make something they consume their entire personality, whether it's weed or gin or whatever. I remember having a good discussion about this exact thing in a fine camra-curated pub pre-lockdown, as I enjoyed a nice pint of Thistledown's Wood Warbler, a delicious ruby ale at 4.7% with a subtle hoppy aftertaste. The landlord's name was Keith.”
Another hilarious Reddit user predicted the future and said: “Five years ago it was Prosecco. Give it another five and it'll be absinthe. Meth's in ten.”
And alluding to one of the most controversial phrases in interior design, one user likened to gin craze to the “live, laugh, love” phenomena and commented: “LIVE LAUGH GIN.”
A spokesperson for John Lewis said: "We're glad to see the conversation is brewing and while we hate to stir the pot, our customers seem to love our quirky teapot. It's great for a cuppa, but doubles as a cocktail server when you invite your best-teas oolong to spill the tea!"
