Stillhead - Blackberry Gin

Stillhead Distillery operates out of Duncan on Vancouver Island, making it one of British Columbia's more established craft spirits producers.

Their Blackberry Gin takes a contemporary approach, using locally foraged and cultivated blackberries as the defining botanical layered over a foundation of traditional gin botanicals including juniper.

The blackberries are not simply added as a flavouring after the fact; they are incorporated during distillation, which integrates the fruit character into the spirit rather than leaving it as a surface-level addition.

The result sits somewhere between a fruit-forward contemporary gin and a classic structure, retaining enough juniper backbone to remain recognizably a gin rather than a liqueur. The deep colour comes naturally from the blackberries and reflects the volume of fruit used in production.

99, it sits at a reasonable point for a BC craft spirit with genuine regional character. It works well in a gin and tonic where the berry notes are allowed to open up, and it is equally effective in sours or as the base for a simple spritz.

Drinkers who appreciate Pacific Northwest fruit-forward gins and want something with local provenance and honest production will find this worth their attention.