It’s not a flavour combination that jumps to mind right away, but strawberries and balsamic vinegar is an absolutely astounding pairing that we don’t think gets nearly enough love. That Boutique-y Gin Company clearly agree and have proffered their own way to put the flavour combo in front of everybody’s eyes – by making Strawberry & Balsamico Gin! They have used a classically-styled base gin and given it the addition of fresh strawberries, strawberry and black pepper distillates and Aceto di Balsamico tradizionale di Modena DOP, which is aged between 12 and 25 years in casks made from chestnut, cherry, oak, mulberry, ash and juniper.

Every gram of the botanicals used to make this gin was sent into near-space (over 24km) and exposed to an air pressure of less than 1/100th of that at sea level! That’s seriously low. In fact, if you were to find yourself above just 18km, also known as Armstong’s limit (where the pressure has already dropped to around 6.3 kPa or 1/16th of that at sea level), then the fluids in your body would vaporise!

Juniper, Coriander, Camomile Flowers, Fresh Lemon Peel, Cardamom, Dried Bitter Orange Peel, Cinnamon, Cubeb Pepper, Liquorice Root and Angelica were used. Oh, and Moon Rock. Obviously. Once they returned to earth, we vacuum distilled them at room temperature (at a pressure nearer 1/10th of that at sea level, in case you were wondering) for freshness and elegance.

Who doesn’t like a chocolate orange, but we all know the perils of ownership; you could leave it on the parcel shelf in the sun, then even refrigeration won’t save it – all you will have is a congealed, hardened cricket ball of chocolate. But what if there was an answer? Here’s your answer, folks: Chocolate Orange Gin. Made using a mix of classic gin botanicals, orange peel, and cocoa nibs, this is even suitable for those who don’t like milk or milk chocolate.