As Johnny Neill, the man behind Marylebone Gin, explains: “What I love about the idea of these gardens is the thought of Georgian refinement, with the likes of Handel hosting concerts there, side-by-side with a bit of notoriety, gambling and card sharping.” Marylebone is accessible via public transport with the Marylebone Station, Edgware Road, Baker Street, Great Portland Street, and Bond Street serving as close local stations. Palate: The palate brings some floral and perfumed qualities with angelica, heather and Parma Violets with piney juniper and orange peel in support. I’ve been trying to keep it quiet until I got the still in place, which is why we can now talk about it! The still is in place at the hotel – it’s sitting in the bar. We’re building a glass screen around it, but it will be on show all the time, so people can come down and look at it. Thomas Greenall founded Greenalls in 1762, when London’s Marylebone Pleasure Gardens were the place to be seen. Moving on to the 1830s, his son-in-law John Neill joined the family firm to create gin: ever since, the love of the craft has passed through eight generations of the line to Johnny Neill, who carries the family torch onward today at Marylebone Pleasure Gardens Distillery Company in Bond Street.

Marylebone is very much a London Dry Gin, and that means it’s distilled using traditional methods in a tiny pot still,” Johnny says. The botanicals are left to steep in wheat grain spirit overnight, and then carefully distilled, with only the best liquid – the ‘heart cut’ – diluted to a whopping 50.2% ABV. It’s a strength that echoes those early gins enjoyed in the pleasure gardens, though Johnny’s creation is much easier on the palate. You could say I grew up on gin,” laughs Johnny. “I’m descended from Thomas Greenall, who founded a brewery in 1762. Our family started distilling not long after, and my father, his uncle and my great grandfather all worked for the company. There’s a fair bit of history there.” Despite being relatively new, The Nest can already lay claim to being one of London’s best rooftop bars. Once Johnny had resolved to make a gin honouring his favourite London neighbourhood, he had to face the first, and most serious, hurdle: finding a botanical blend to do the streets of Marylebone justice.He says, “I would like to make sure that I adhere to the principles of the past, but also look to the future, and to exploration and innovation. I want to play around with different flavours and techniques, be it distilling in different vessels or using different materials. But most importantly I want to create high-quality, bespoke products that people really enjoy drinking!” Johnny, you’re family is pretty much steeped in gin – so where does all this inspiration come from?

The versatile establishment welcomes patrons with a relaxed atmosphere and stylish surroundings that lend themselves to after-work drinks and dinner dates. Overall: Fresh, bright and full-bodied, with this gin should make some lovely G&Ts. Garnish with a ribbon of orange peel to bring out the citrus notes. As an adult, he moved there himself; he had a mews house just off Montagu Square for nearly a decade, absorbing the atmosphere in the last scrap of central London that still feels like a friendly little village. When it came time to make his own name in the gin world, he looked to his adopted home for inspiration. In the end, Johnny settled on Pleasure Garden Distilling Company as a name for his venture, and 13 elegant botanicals to go into his flagship gin. These combine to form the refined liquid in the beautiful blue bottle that you unwrapped in this month’s Gin of the Month box. And what a liquid it is. Palate: Rolled oats, hazelnut spread, floral honey and chocolate bourbon biscuits initially with grassy malt, lime peel and drying spice.

Settle in the indoor lounge or venture out onto the wrap-around terrace and enjoy views of the London skyline while downing your beverage of choice. DJs provide endless entertainment from their treehouse “fort.” Mayahuel So, Marylebone London Dry Gin reads, on the bottle, as ‘Mary-le-Bone,’ inciting an image, perhaps, of a London housemaid in the gardens on her afternoon off, flirting outrageously with a handsome young subaltern in uniform; or a pretty French maid – maybe called Marie – falling for a prince: in these gardens where rich and poor could, for the first time, mingle without drawing attention; anything was possible. Expect plenty of mezcal, tequila, and small plates to keep you going throughout the evening. Cool Bars in Marylebone: Practical Tips MoM: You’re one of the leading producers of flavoured gin. Why was this a category that interested you?