Conker Spirit was founded in 2014 by Rupert Holloway, a former chartered surveyor who swapped spreadsheets for stills and never looked back. The distillery, based in Bournemouth, produces a small range of spirits anchored by this Dorset Dry Gin — a London Dry in style but deeply rooted in the landscape of the Dorset coast and the New Forest.
The botanical bill includes ten ingredients, several of which are sourced locally: New Forest gorse flowers, Dorset elderberries, samphire from the Jurassic Coast, and hand-picked lime flowers. These sit alongside the traditional core of juniper, coriander, and citrus peel. The base spirit is English wheat grain, distilled in a copper pot still named after Holloway's grandmother.
On the Nose
The nose is quintessentially English — fresh, green, and gently floral. Juniper provides a clean opening, immediately supported by a distinctive gorse flower note that adds a coconut-like sweetness I find utterly charming. The lime flowers contribute a delicate, almost linden-tea quality, while the samphire adds a very subtle maritime salinity. The overall impression is of a hedgerow walk on a warm day — natural, unforced, and thoroughly pleasant.
The Palate
On the palate, Conker delivers a beautifully balanced drinking experience. The juniper is present and correct — firm enough to declare this unmistakably gin — but the local botanicals share the stage generously. The gorse flower sweetness is more pronounced here, providing a honeyed quality that lifts the mid-palate. The elderberry adds a subtle berry fruitiness that I find more interesting than the overt fruit flavours of many flavoured gins. The samphire's salinity emerges as a mineral quality on the finish, giving the gin a savoury edge that sets it apart.
At 40% ABV, the mouthfeel is lighter than some, but the botanical complexity compensates — there is plenty to hold your attention.
The Finish
The finish is medium, clean, and gently saline. The juniper fades first, leaving the gorse sweetness and that distinctive mineral quality from the samphire. It is a finish that evokes place — specifically, the meeting point of heathland and coast that defines Dorset's character.
In a gin and tonic with light tonic and a sprig of rosemary, Conker is excellent — the herbal notes harmonise beautifully with the gin's own botanical profile. It is also a surprisingly good Martini gin; the slight saltiness plays well against dry vermouth, adding a savoury dimension that I find very appealing.
Conker Dorset Dry is a gin that proves terroir is more than a marketing concept for English distillers. It tastes of its place — not in a forced or contrived way, but with the quiet confidence of a spirit made by someone who genuinely understands and loves the landscape he's distilling from. That authenticity is hard to fake and impossible to ignore.
