I’m sure by now, you’ve tasted, heard about or at the very least seen the craft gin trend that has been rocking the world, and especially South Africa. If you haven’t, climb out from under the rock you’ve been living under, and head on over to The Gin Box.

Each month, The Gin Box will choose one South African small-batch craft gin and pair it with a range of products that complement the gin of the month. Often these bottles are limited edition and exclusive to the site, so you won’t be able to purchase them anywhere else!

Being a subscription box, you can sign up to receive the box monthly at R650 per box. However, you can also subscribe bi-monthly at R650 per box, only getting one every other month, and quarterly at R650 per box and get one every three months.

Most of these gins range between R300 and R500, and you get a large assortment of other goodies, so it’s very much worth the price tag in my opinion.

You can also purchase previous month’s boxes if they do not sell out. There are a couple of previous month’s boxes still available for purchase, as well as a few other limited edition taster boxes. You can also find a large selection of South African craft gins available for purchase, as well as craft tonics, G n T popsicles and garnishes. It’s basically a gin-lover’s heaven!

I was incredibly lucky, in that The Gin Box sent me one of their past boxes to try out. Now, I’m a huge gin nut (if you follow me on social media, you probably know this already by now), so you have no idea how exciting this was for me!

THE GIN BOX

Each box is super professionally done. The box itself is presented so beautifully, and even has all of the brand’s social media links on the inside cover. You can also stand a chance to win your next gin box, if you take a picture of your gin box and post to social media with the hashtag #theginboxsa and tag the brand. Love this idea!

THE GIN BOX

I also loved that I received a hand written card from the team, as well as a pamphlet that explained everything in the box for me. It’s attention to detail like this that makes me want to repurchase. A big thumbs up was that they spelt my name right – something that’s often wrong.

THE GIN BOX

This was actually the February box, so as you can see, it was all about the month of lurve. I loved all the little touches and extras.

In the box, I received:

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A nicely sized sample of the dehydrated garnishes you can purchase on the site.

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A pack of three delicious Lindt Lindor milk chocolate truffles.

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The cutest heart-shaped ‘Love’ cookie that was DAMN delicious too.

THE GIN BOX

A strawberry daiquiri from Original Iced cocktails.

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Three Almond & Apple Raw Bites from Joe & Co.

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Two Barker & Quin Light at Heart tonic waters.

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A full sized bottle of Southern Cross gin.

Lots of lovely goodies, right?

The Southern Cross gin is made with triple-distilled Pinotage and Grape spirit, seawater from the Atlantic and Indian oceans, a little artesian well water from Morelig farm and 21 different botanicals. A truly South African gin.

I absolutely adored the bottle too – a glass stopper and sealed with wax. We’ll definitely keep this bottle when we’re done with it. Does anyone else do that with beautiful bottles? I mean, I have no use for it, but it’s just too damned beautiful to throw away.

It’s definitely not a beginner’s gin, as the flavour is quite complex. I, on the otherhand, really enjoyed it. We found it paired well with a very basic tonic, which is why the delicious reduced calorie Barker & Quin Light at Heart tonic worked so perfectly. I did use the slice of dehydrated orange I received as a garnish, but I think a fresh slice of grapefruit or even a dash of fresh grapefruit juice would have worked a bit better. The dehydrated orange would work exceptionally well with a rooibos gin like this one from Cape Town Gin & Spirits Company.

As for all the other goodies – I ate the cookie as soon as I’d snapped my photos and it was delicious. Hubby and I shared the Lindt, but I gifted the Joe & Co bites to my mom. She’s on a super health kick at the moment, so it was nice to offer her some healthy treats. The Strawberry Daiquiri is still in our freezer, and I plan on splashing that out some time soon!

What did I think of the box overall?

An absolutely fantastic idea! I don’t think it’s something I’d subscribe to monthly. While hubby and I enjoy our gin, we also enjoy a many other drinks as well (could we sound more like raging alcoholics??), so to get a new bottle of gin once a month is a lovely luxury but not a necessity. I think it’s definitely something we’ll subscribe to with regards to the quarterly box. One box every 3 months is a much better idea. Buying a past box is also a great idea!

If you’re a gin connoisseur, then subscribing monthly would definitely be a fabulous way to grow your collection of gins, as well as taste some great new offerings.

This box was lovely, and I loved that we got a premium bottle of small-batch craft gin to enjoy at home.

P.S.

If you’re still puzzling what to buy mum for Mother’s Day, there are some of the May boxes still available, with the most GORGEOUS bottle of Mirari Damask Rose Shimmer gin. It’s pale pink, infused with natural rose water and it’s SHIMMERY. It’s the shimmery version of the regular Mirari Damask Rose gin, and is available exclusively from The Gin Box. The box is put together with Rose & Cucumber tonic, Rose lemonade, Rose Turkish Delight, Rose-infused fudge, as well as Goldberg’s recently launched Hibiscus tonic water. A truly delightful sounding box! I’m hoping that there will be a few left over at the end of the month, as my budget just doesn’t allow for one right now. Adulting sucks, and gin makes everything better 😉