Winter 2020

COMPETITION

The chance to win one of five bottles of gin from Hawkridge Distillers C ompton-based Hawkridge Distillers has been creating custom branded spirits and customised corporate

gin gifts for just over a year. It has been an eventful year for the company having won two important awards. A bronze award at the international IWSC competition for its West Berkshire Brewery Dragon Hill London Dry gin and the 2020 Thames Valley Company Hero Award for its work in supplying free hand sanitiser to charities and volunteer groups at the height of the coronavirus pandemic earlier in the year. During this time, the distillery team has also been busy, carefully developing its own new gin range which will be launched this month. The Blowing Stone range of gins celebrates the local history of the distillery. In 871AD, on January 8, the future King Alfred the Great led his Saxon army to his first victory against the Viking ‘Heathen Army’ in the Battle of Ashdown. The battle is believed to have taken place in the immediate vicinity of the distillery and ended around a solitary thorn tree. The distillery’s building – Danetree – takes its name from the important battle’s location. To summon his troops into battle on that cold winter’s morning, legend has it that Alfred blew skilfully into an ancient, perforated sarsen stone which emitted a loud booming sound across the Downs. In response, his soldiers and many local villagers convened and marched east with him along the Ridgeway to meet and defeat their Viking foe. That stone still exists and is now known locally as ‘The Blowing Stone’. Managing Director of Hawkridge Distillers Phil Howarth says: “We wanted to create a product range that brought the local history of our area to life.

Q: Which “king to be” blew into The Blowing Stone to summon his troops into The Battle of Ashdown against the Danish Vikings in January 871AD? a) Alfred the Great, b) Aethelstan c) Edward the Elder To complete your entry, go to www.hawkridgedistillers.com/competition Hawkridge Distillers will draw the lucky winners on Friday, December 5. Closing date for entries is Thursday, December 4 at 6pm. One entry per reader only. Minimum entry age 18 (age verification required on delivery). To order any of The Blowing Stone range of gins, an exclusive discount of 10% and free delivery for Out & About readers is available throughout November and December. Use the code TBSNEWBURY10 at the checkout in their online store – www.hawkridgedistillers.com/shop For O&A terms and conditions please see p5.

“Since it is our first range, we thought it fitting that it should be represented by the defining moment that launched Alfred’s successful military campaign against the Vikings. “For him, this battle was the first of many which eventually resulted in the unification of all the Anglo Saxon kingdoms and the creation of England.” Three varieties of The Blowing Stone are included in the range – all of them developed to represent flavours that would have been available to the villagers, townsfolk and aristocracy of Wessex in the 9th century: a signature London Dry Gin infused with meadowsweet and elderflower is accompanied by a Wild Strawberry gin and a delicious Crabapple and Royal Ginger gin. To celebrate the launch of The Blowing Stone gin range Hawkridge Distillers is offering five Out & About readers the opportunity to win a first-batch bottle of The Blowing Stone gin of their choice. To enter the draw, answer the following question:

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O&A WINTER 2020