World’s First Gin Distillery At Sea

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British cruise line P&O Cruises has announced that it will be producing its own “sea-inspired” gin Marabelle onboard the new Iona, home to the world’s first gin distillery at sea, in partnership with UK-based Salcombe Distilling Co.

The world’s first gin distillery at sea is located on board P&O’s new cruise ship, Iona, situated within the Anderson’s Bar and Library. According to Salcombe Distilling Co., the gin’s recipe was inspired by the terroir found on Iona, a Scottish island and namesake of the Iona ship. Heather – found on the island is one of the 18 botanicals will be used to make the gin, including heather, citrus, green apple, blackberry, rose petals, mint and sea kelp.

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Following its launch on Iona, Salcombe Distilling Co. will take over distillation of P&O Cruises Marabelle Gin in its 450-litre copper still Provident in Salcombe. The gin will then be served across the entire 5,200-passenger P&O Cruises fleet. In addition, two gin master classes will be available for attendance on the new Iona to create two unique experiences for P&O Cruises. One will be aimed at theory with a tasting session at the end, while the other, “a smaller, more intimate experience” will allow guests to make their own Marabelle Gin under the tutelage of an expert from a selection of gin botanical distillates created by Salcombe Distilling Co. These specially created gins will be bottled for guests to take home.

P&O Cruises president, Paul Ludlow, said: “The world’s first gin distillery at sea will be one of the stand-out star attractions on our new ship. Marabelle means star of the sea so this is a perfectly apt name for our unique-recipe gin created on board Iona, a ship set to make sea the star.”

The label found on the Marabelle bottles is the shape of a gin pennant flag, which is a “symbol of hospitality flown by sailors for years." When hoisted it invites people to come aboard for a G&T, so it’s the perfect icon to symbolize our gin brand and partnership.”

P&O Cruises also plans to work with Salcombe Distilling Co. to develop exclusive gins inspired by the destinations visited.

Salcombe Gin will be holding a series of gin masterclasses on board, so passengers can learn more about the nation’s favourite spirit and get the chance to create their own gin recipe.