If you’re happy and you love gin clap your hands.

If you’re happy and you love beer clap your hands.

If you’re happy and you love gin….. you get the gist.

I’m not exactly what you’d call a gin aficionado per se, but after a gin making class at Manchester Three Rivers, I no longer gravitate towards 2 for £25 bottles of Gordons and I’m more than happy to stretch my legs when it comes to my mixers.

With Ten Green Bottles being just on the office doorstep, Dan and I dusted off the holiday blues post work after in search of their signature gin cocktail, the Poppy Rose (Poppies Gin and Rose Lemonade with Pomegranate and Grapefruit garnish) and a beer or 2 for Dan before heading to Amore for some delicious Italian fare.

Ten Green Bottles is a kitsch & cool gin bar on Merrial Street in Newcastle Under Lyme, just a hop, skip and a gin away from the main shopping high street but close enough to the likes of Lymestone Vaults and Cappello Lounge if you fancied carrying on your night elsewhere.  With Ten Green Bottles closing at a respectable 9pm, its more than likely that you will!

Stocking over 100 bottled beers from around the world (including a few of my belgian favourites, La Chouffe and Duvel) as well as an extensive gin collection, wine by the glass or bottle and a gin garden that comes alive in the warmer months, it’s one of my favourite places to enjoy a tipple or two in Newcastle-Under-Lyme.

Ten Green Bottles opens at midday and is a popular haunt should you fancy some lunchtime gin indulgence but if you’re a strictly after hours gin drinker, it’s also the perfect place to catch up over a  caffeine fix.  Early doors (I’m talking 5:30-6pm) you’ll be lucky enough to park your bum for the duration of the evening on either the cosy sofa area or one of the bar tables but due to its pint sized proportions and popularity, this place fills up prettttty fast and you’ll struggle to get yourself a table after 6:30pm.

Not sure how to enjoy your gin outside of a regular G&T?  No worries.  These guys know their gin like the back of their hand and with upwards of 30 bottles of the good stuff behind the bar, they’re more than happy to recommend based on your particular preferences.  After sinking the deliciously sweet Poppy Rose, I complimented the sunshine outside with the Rhubarb and Custard (Warner Edwards Rhubarb Gin, Edinburgh Gin Rhubarb and Ginger Liqueur topped up with Sicilian Lemonade with rhubarb and ginger garnish).  A citrusy cocktail with warming undertones thanks to the fresh ginger!

Love your cocktail and fancy trying your hand at home?  Ten Green Bottles stocks a selection of the gins served behind the bar along with mixers so that you can stock up your drinks cupboard and fill your fridge ready for BBQ weather or a Friday night.  I always make sure I have a supply of the Fentimens Elderflower Tonic on hand to serve with the Brecon Botanicals gin, ice and a strip of cucumber for a refreshing and thirst quenching cocktail.  You can also pick up your favourite beers to take away and even better, if you’re struggling to find just the right gift for that special someone, Ten Green Bottles will box up your purchase to make the perfect gift!