Amalfi lemons create an award-winning tipple from Tyrone
Lemons picked on Italy’s picturesque Amalfi coast have been blended by Wild
Atlantic Distillery, a FoodNI member, in Tyrone in to a premium Irish vodka loved by
expert judges in a prestigious international awards.
Created by brothers-in-law Jim Nash and Brian Ashe at their Wild Atlantic Distillery,
located near Castlederg, the unique flavour of their Amalfi Lemon Vodka gained a
silver medal in the recent World Vodka Awards. The small distillery, in addition,
gained another silver medal in the awards for its Premium Irish Vodka and a double
gold medal for the Best Irish Flavoured Gin in the World Gin Awards.
The World Vodka Awards and others for the industry are held annually by the World
Drinks organisation in Britain to recognise and promote the best international vodkas
in taste and style for consumers worldwide.
“We are absolutely thrilled to receive these important accolades for the quality of our
gin, our initial product, and the vodkas,” says Jim Nash. “They are a marvellous
endorsement by experts of our focus on creating premium products that offer
consumers different tastes. This is especially true of our Amalfi lemon flavoured
vodka which is in line with the global trend towards premium products.
“Winning double gold for our gin as the Best Flavoured Irish for the second year in
row is another immensely encouraging development for the business,” adds Jim.
The brothers-in-law, who both spent many years working abroad, came to Northern
Ireland in 2019 determined to revive distilling in the North West, once the home of
one of the island’s biggest and most successful whiskey distillers. The two
entrepreneurs have since successfully realised a long-held dream of reviving
whiskey with the launch last year of the IslandMen single malt, a new whiskey which
has already won widespread acclaim.
The purpose-built distillery, constructed on land owned by Brian, also features a
visitor centre, a traditional New York-style bar, a gin school, a programme of tours
and cocktail master classes.
The spirits are all distilled in a handmade copper pot still using a combination of
traditional and modern skills to produce exceptional artisan products.
