KINSHIP
[Kinship] Noun
n. a sharing of characteristics or origins
Kinship Spirits Company is a brand house where the shared roots of our
products, their stories and the brands they have inspired are united.
OUR BRANDS
The African continent is a land alive with an intoxicating energy that invigorates the present, inspires many vivid futures, and re-imagines her storied past for generations to come.
Africa’s southern tip is home to an eclectic array of histories and mythologies deeply rooted in her soil, nourishing nature’s bounty and giving forth colour and smell and taste and touch – an amazement on the senses. This African spirit blooms across the landscape, ancient natural miracles that still stir and stimulate today, as they have for centuries passed.
That spirit is hard to define, harder even to distil. But what if that that essence could be bottled? What if Africa’s natural abundance, her awe-inspiring sensory experience, and her enchanting memoir could be boiled down into a single sip?
Boldly answering that what if is Kinship Spirits, the brand roof that houses the shared roots of its products. Kinship draws on native narratives – implanted in a country rich in its traditions of oral histories and story-telling – to craft a range of fine, small batch, craft spirits (from local produce), each one steeped South African symbolism.
You see, a drink is more than just some liquid in a bottle or glass. A drink is a discourse with the drinker, and a conversation with the crafter, one that will linger on the lips long after the taste dissipates. A drink is a dialogue that draws you in to an immersive experience of enjoyment and sharing.
This is why Kinship is passionately driven to authentically and authoritatively contribute to the global discourse around heritage spirits, with proudly Made-in-SA distillations, distinctive and distinguished. It’s also why each of the heroes of the spirits brands are emblematic of the rich history and diverse nature of Kinship’s home and host country.
MALACHITE GIN
CAPE FYNBOS GIN
Our gin is a celebration of the beauty and wonder of The Cape Floral Kingdom – one of only six in the world – the smallest and most diverse. Using only hand-picked, sustainable floral botanicals – Malachite is an adventure into the subtle, delicious and delicate aromas unique to fynbos. An adventure we share with our brand champion, the Malachite Sunbird – which feeds on, and pollinates, many of the exquisite flowering plants.
Fynbos is not only spectacularly beautiful and refined but has a sense of absolute wonder in its geometries and intricacies. To walk through fynbos country is to be taken on a sensual journey. Malachite seeks to immerse you in that journey – to awaken your senses to a timeless world of nature through spirit.
The infused fynbos is in perfect harmony with the classic gin botanicals – subtle juniper mingles with hints of elderflower and chamomile, spring blooms and delicate spice. A fruity touch of lemon rind lingers.
ALBATROSS VODKA
CAPE GRAPE VODKA
When one thinks of the history of vodka and its association with the cold northern nations where it was first distilled one asks what exists in the Southern Hemisphere that evokes the same emotion and imagination? The forbidding and icy roaring forties in the Southern Oceans is such a place.
Wild, wind-swept and treacherous – a legendarily severe environment. An environment that the Albatross not only calls its home – but which it masters with effortless grace. The majestic bird’s independent spirit is instilled in every drop of Albatross Vodka.
So, the South has its place and a cool hero. Add to that our core ingredient – grapes. We are renowned for our brilliant wines – based on top quality grapes. Albatross is distilled from a selection of the finest Cape Grapes and the purified water of the Table Mountain aquifer – producing a pure, classy vodka with brilliant character and depth. Subtle fruit aromas with complex, round flavours and silky-smooth finish.
KARO BRANDY
KLEIN KAROO POTSTILL BRANDY
Our story has its roots in the Klein Karoo, the mystical valley between the Swartberg and Langeberg Mountain ranges; the home of the farm where the Colombar grapes, that are the essence of our Karo brandy, are grown.
Legend has it that these fine grapes were planted and conjured by the hands of our heroine Karo – a wild haired goddess that infused her sacred earth with nurturing spells.
Karo Brandy is her story in a bottle. She is depicted here on her Tarot card as she floats above the beautiful Karoo landscape – inviting us to share the fruits of her magic.
Karo Cape Brandy XO is double distilled in copper potstills and matured in French oak barrels for 13 years. Under the watchful eye of Master Distiller Kobus Gelderblom at Oude Molen Distillery, the final blend results in a unique flavour combination of delicate dried peaches and litchi, with a hint of indigenous herbs from the Karoo bush. Smooth and lingering with an aftertaste of vanilla and apricot.
ELEPHANTOM RUM
AFRICAN DARK RUM
Elephantom Rum brings you the legend of a famous bull elephant from the Knysna Forest on the Southern Coast of South Africa. Hunting decimated this once flourishing herd of unique forest elephants – but a lone bull was known to appear and then magically disappear to those seeking the last remaining elephants.
Was it real or a phantom of the imagination? Elephantom Rum, the mystical one, is created in honour of that lone bull elephant. A magnificent creature that stoked the imagination – taking you deep into the folklore of a wild and exotic place.
Dark and mysterious, our rum is triple distilled from pure fermented cane molasses in a copper pot still and aged in bourbon casks – delivering a rich, rounded and fruity flavour, full of depth and complexity. Caramel notes dominate to start, fading to reveal cooked peaches, light spices, vanilla and hints of apple. A journey best taken relaxing by a fire.
The Drum Gin Club
AFRICAN DRY GIN
Drum Gin is a salute to the characters, the entertainers, the lovers of life. A gathering in celebration to the beat of the drum. Each gin is a story in a bottle, and ours is no different. An African Dry gin to capture African soul, of which there is an abundance to draw upon, and build with. That is the inspiration behind Drum Gin. The ideal of community, of hope, and a bright future realised through a shared sense of belonging.
Drum Gin is juniper rich and citrussy with an unusual spice unfolding with the full vocabulary of African botanicals. On the nose it has a sweetness from rich citrus, notes of mace and grains of paradise. The body of the gin is full and well-rounded – with a rich beginning, flavourful middle and a unique finish coming through from the African birds eye chilli.
Distillery Road
DISTILLERY ROAD CONTEMPORARY GIN
An independent African gin with a rebel heart
In every industry and every sphere of life, the mundane sometimes has to make way for the wondrous. The unexpected. Those who shake things up.
Evocative of the colourful past of Bosman’s Crossing and spiced with some of the more rebellious ingredients in South Africa’s liquor history, including the spirited business of bootlegging, Distillery Road African Gin is an adventurous blend of old and new.
Hand-crafted at its home on Distillery Road in Stellenbosch, this distinctive African gin offers a contemporary, wild-at-heart taste created with the beloved London dry method.
This spirit leads with top notes of lime and coriander on the nose, following on the palate with distinct warmth, melting with ginger to create a warm rounded mouthfeel.
The mid-palate lingers with black pepper and delicate notes of fynbos such as Confetti Bush and lemon pelargonium. This gentle spicy gin takes a bow with the root base of Juniper.
For the perfect pour, add a splash of Indian tonic, with a zesty lemon wheel & freshly sliced ginger, and drink to those rebels who make life a bit more interesting. Salut!
