Known as the last wilderness of Scotland, the North West region is a dramatic, rugged coastline with miles upon miles of empty land, majestic mountains and wildlife. The drama of winter snowstorms are followed by bright summers and in between the seasons, Mother Nature ebbs and flows amidst lochs, grasslands and munros.
To see this part of Scotland is to experience the very heart of the country, reminiscent of the days of Braveheart and the vast landscapes depicted in Shakespeare’s Macbeth. There is a deep history, an embedded passion in the soils that make up the land and one that lends itself to the growing of unique flora and fauna.
The inspiration and source of Arcturus is Torridon, situated in the West Highlands. Drawing on Scotland as its larder, Arcturus is made from foraged ingredients from the land, sea and mountains. The gin is the Highlands in a bottle, capturing the soul of the region, a magical embodiment of the land.
Using the Highlands as the inspiration for Arcturus meant collecting the very best ingredients in Torridon. We foraged the gin’s botanicals from our hotel estate, experimented with different mixtures and finally landed on the perfect blend of botanicals, juniper and herbs.
Scots Lovage – The lovingly named Scots Lovage gives Arcturus a hint of sweet liquorice with a touch of parsley on the nose. One of the key ingredients in the hand-crafted gin, Scots Lovage only grows in very specific conditions in the Northern Hemisphere and is grown at the gin’s source, on The Torridon estate.
Rowanberries – Provide light berry notes and bring a cool fresh flavour to the gin, which makes the mouth feel very clean.
Bilberries –Harvested Bilberries bring a lovely sweet flavour to Arcturus
Kelp Seaweed – Foraged from the estate’s sea loch, kelp seaweed adds a deep herbal and unusual salty note to the gin
The complimenting flavours of the aromatic Scots Lovage, mountainous berries and water-based seaweed creates a crisp, clean gin with a dry finish.