Sipsmith

The founding story is part of the brand's identity. Galsworthy and Hall had to overturn a 19th-century law restricting small-batch gin production to establish London's first copper pot distillery in nearly two centuries, a legal battle credited with helping to revive small-batch gin in the capital. In December 2016, Beam Suntory acquired a controlling interest in Sipsmith, bringing it into a global spirits portfolio whilst the Hammersmith distillery retained its own identity.

The AF botanical spirit is positioned as an alcohol-free spirit rather than a non-alcoholic gin, a deliberate distinction placing it in the broader category of AF botanical spirits. The two-year development process and the 189-prototype figure carry their own numerology: 1809 was the last year a gin distillery had operated in London before Sipsmith's arrival. The AF product is a single, focused offering rather than a range.

Sipsmith's AF botanical spirit carries wide distribution across mainstream supermarkets and the brand's direct channel, making it one of the more accessible AF spirits from an established distillery, particularly for sober-curious drinkers who want recognised craft credentials behind their botanical serve. Pricing sits in the premium bracket, consistent with the parent gin range. The distillery's history, which predates the AF category by more than a decade, gives the offering a provenance that most AF-only brands cannot replicate.