If you were to create a spirit inspired by Canberra, what would it be?
Well, the team at Pop Canberra has teamed up with Underground Spirits to work out exactly that. The result - Sweet Sun Soaked Gin - was launched on Thursday, with the spirit available for pre-order to be picked up from December 15.
It seems appropriate that the team chose a gin to capture the very essence of golden sun-soaked Canberra days and those warm, gentle summer evenings. Canberrans are gin lovers, after all - not to mention the capital is home to some great distillers.
This particular gin is bursting with the sweet juicy flavours of mango bubble tea, herbaceous notes of bay leaf, balanced with an intriguing dash of native lime for a citrus squeeze. There's also surprising, aromatic undertones of floral bouquets.
At first glance, the ingredient list doesn't scream Canberra - the capital isn't exactly a prime location for growing mangoes, for example. But Underground Spirits' Claudia Roughley said every ingredient had some connection to the city that inspired it.
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"Of course, this is about getting Canberra in a bottle," she said.
"So we've got the mango bubble tea, which is about the Canberra bubble. We've got the bay leaf, which is about the bay that all Canberrans want to get away to.
"We've got [a] beautiful bouquet of flowers for an event that we all love here in Canberra - Floriade. And we've also got a native lime, which is a bit of a nod to the lime football team - the Raiders."
The launch of the gin comes as Pop Canberra, other small businesses and the ACT government have been encouraging Canberrans to shop local this Christmas.
Pop Canberra itself has made a name on Lonsdale Street for being jam-packed with local designers and makers.
"It's been a challenging year, it's been a challenging two years, but we are back in business," ACT Business Minister Tara Cheyne said.
"That's what this is all about. I just can't think of a better example or something to celebrate than this collaboration between Pop Canberra and Underground Spirits - local champions and champions of [other local producers] in their own right.
"And I think this very special collaboration is about amplifying their individual reputations, and also amplifying who Canberra is."
Sweet Sun Soaked Gin can be pre-ordered at popcanberra.com.au.
