An idea conjured up through a collaboration between an English lady, passionate about Bulgaria and a Bulgarian visionary.
For many years Barbara Page-Roberts, a British businesswoman living in Bulgaria, had been gathering sloes (‘trunki’) from the Bulgarian hedgerows and turning them into sloe gin, mainly as Christmas gifts for her friends. In 2015 she discovered Bulgarian Dogwood trees which produce cornels (‘drenki’) another tart fruit, much redder in colour than the sloes, and started making ‘Drenki Gin’ as well as ‘Trunki Gin’. It was a huge success, especially for cocktails in summer.
As part of its continuing diversification and value-added mission, the agribusiness company Agrotime, in 2017, joined forces with Barbara Page-Roberts to make the first commercial batch of Rustic Reserve brand gin liqueurs.
Says Ivan Krachunov– Owner and Managing Director of Agrotime – “All my life, me and my father and my grandfather before me, we have all sought to add value to the cornucopia of natural fruits and plants that nature has bestowed on us. Our drenki product is unique and quintessentially Bulgarian to showcase our country to the world!”
Craft 19 Gin - with 19 Bulgarian plants
Imagine filling a suitcase with 25 hand-picked Bulgarian aromatic plants and flying to England for a day-trip to meet with renowned Master Distiller, Rob Dorsett, who would go on to select 19 of the herbs to produce a gin of distinctive character, being a combination of fruity, flowery, woody and citrus notes, including mountain juniper and Mursala Chai from the Rhodopes region.
No Artificial Flavours, Added Colours or Preservatives.
Picking wild berries and the making of fruit gins is a centuries-old family tradition in Southern England, and hand-picked Bulgarian berries, steeped in gin with a little sugar for three months from September to December according to the British tradition, form the basis of our Limited Edition Rustic Reserve Fruit Gin Infusions, each bottle of which is made from about ½ kg. of fruit. Our Gin Infusions are Completely Natural, with No Artificial Flavours, Added Colours or Preservatives.
Our awards
Craft 19 awarded BRONZE in the category of London Dry Gin, by the world renowned IWSC, London – the capital of Craft Gin in the World! And GOLD at Bohemian Spirits Awards!
Sloe Gin was awarded SILVER at Bohemian Spirits Awards!
Proving that our selection of Bulgarian Botanicals and natural fruits makes for a World Class Gin and Fruit Gin Infusions!
