P&O Celebrates Anniversary With Exclusive New Gin

To celebrate World Gin Day on June 10th as well as to commemorate 180 years of P&O History, P&O Cruises are set to launch their first-ever blended gin.

Anderson’s Gin, is named after P&O’s co-founder, Arthur Anderson and is described as being uniquely hand-crafted and blended by P&O Cruises’ in-house team and distilled at Edinburgh’s award-winning Summerhall Distillery.

The gin is has a distinctive, premium blend, with a story of east meets west as 11 botanicals born from P&O’s historical routes have been copper distilled to create a superbly smooth and lightly spiced gin.

The key botanicals include Ceylon Tea Leaves from Sri Lanka, Cloves from Indonesia which are warm and slightly peppery, these cloves give a sultry deep flavour to the finish of the gin. Fennel from Italy is a strong and unmistakable addition, and gives a sweetness and herbaceous quality. Lastly is Angelica Root from Norway, which is a bittering agent and an essential component which binds all the botanicals together for a well-structured and lengthy finish as well as providing a much-needed balance against sweeter commercial tonic waters.

The bottle’s label design traces Arthur Anderson’s original nautical lines, both literally and figuratively and is inspired by traditional nautical charts with a nod to the gin’s namesake in the shape of his silhouette.

P&O Cruises Senior Vice President Paul Ludlow said: “Gin is a quintessentially British drink so what better way to commemorate P&O Cruises 180 years of history than with our own exclusive blend.”

“This must-try gin experience will not only give a taste of far-flung destinations but will provide a real talking point for guests.”

By Richard Hemming

Anderson’s Gin will be available in all bars fleet-wide from June 10th. [Image: P&O Cruises]