> Buy Hand Sanitizer
Gin can be a bit of an acquired taste, which might explain why it has spent decades lagging behind other liquors like vodka, tequila, and whiskey in terms of both popularity and sales. According to data shared in Business Insider, not a single one of the 50 states ranked gin as its top spirit; in America, gin is even less popular than syrupy digestif (and perennial college favorite) Jägermeister. However, the wheels of change are churning rapidly in the other direction across the world. The U.K. Wine and Spirit Trade Association reports that the number of British gin brands has doubled over the past ten years, and total sales are up nearly 50% since 2017. We are in the middle of a gin renaissance, and homegrown DTLA distillery The Spirit Guild is riding that wave with aplomb.
If you try to visit the Guild’s sleek Arts District tasting room for a tour (and a sip) you’ll find their doors are shut. The COVID-19 pandemic has shaken them to their core, like it has for so many other brick-and-mortar businesses across the country. However, just because The Spirit Guild no longer lets you get a glimpse of the gleaming copper vats where its gin is distilled doesn’t mean that they’ve closed up shop completely. Quite the opposite — in this time of struggle, The Spirit Guild is using their resources (and delicious offerings) to uplift their downtown community.
A dwindling supply of hand sanitizer is just one of the seemingly-small, but genuinely pernicious side effects of the pandemic. With so much being bought up by individuals, essential institutions like hospitals are dealing with sanitizer shortages that put workers and patients in peril. That’s why the Spirit Guild has begun using their top-tier equipment to manufacture hand sanitizer, as well as gin and vodka. Most of this sanitizer has already been allocated for use by institutions, but production has ramped up and 16 oz bottles are available for the general public too. Get yours today!
The Spirit Guild products are still available for purchase online, with the intention to open up curbside pick-up and delivery options in the near future. These offerings include their Astral Pacific Gin, which puts a twist on traditional botanicals with a dash of pink peppercorn—native to Southern California—and two types of juniper, as well as Vapid Vodka, which is distilled entirely from a base of clementines. A dollar from each item sold will be donated to the US Bartenders’ Guild; supporting emergency relief grants for local businesses and professionals affected by bar closures nationwide.
One day soon, The Spirit Guild hopes to welcome loyal patrons back into its tasting room and production facilities. Until then, producing hand sanitizer and supporting other businesses through strategic grant donations are two powerful ways that this DTLA brand has chosen to use the quarantine for positive change.