Gin-gle Bells - a message from Iolo Williams

To purchase any of our conservation gin products go to: StDavidsGin.Wales

We are now in the third year of our partnership with local Pembrokeshire business St Davids Gin, so we’d like to give you a quick update and offer a suggestion or two if you are stuck for Christmas present ideas (spoiler alert: its gin!)

St Davids Gin launched in 2017 with two varieties, RSPB Ramsey Island gin and St Davids Seaweed gin. Using heather flowers and water mint harvested from the island and seaweed collected under licence from the mainland, these uniquely flavoured drinks proved a big hit. St Davids Gin donate 5% of all net sales to the RSPB for conservation work and environmental projects on Ramsey and Grassholm

The money raised so far has paid for or contributed towards:

• Installation of a UV water filtration system in the Ramsey shop which allows visitors to refill their water bottles and removed the need for us to sell plastic bottles on the island
• Boat hire for our annual trips to Grassholm to cut free fledgling gannets entangled in marine plastics
• Manx shearwater nest box and tracking hardware on Ramsey which allows us to closely monitor this elusive, nocturnal seabird as part of our seabird monitoring programme
• Offset some of the costs of our annual conservation grazing project which allows us to manage a flock of Welsh mountain sheep which provide ideal grazing conditions for chough

Last year the Ramsey variety received a makeover and, in addition to island botanicals, Ramsey spring water was used in the making of the gin. Legend has it the water from St Justinians well has healing qualities, although I can’t guarantee it prevents hangovers….

Both gins are now available in smaller 200ml bottles as well as the standard 500ml

And for a limited time only St Davids Gin are offering something extra special. The next 1000 bottles sold will be entered into a prize draw with the following up for grabs (total prize worth over £5,000):

• 2 nights stay for up to 8 people in 4 suites at the Cathederal Villas, St Davids
• All meals (Breakfast/Lunch/Dinner) provided by St Davids Gin and Kitchen
• Guided tour of RSPB Ramsey Island and boat trip with Thousand Islands Expeditions around the island
• Catch and cook or foraging experience
• 6 x bottles of the 2020 Ramsey Island Gin
• 6 x artwork from the Ramsey Island series

In addition, St Davids Gin will donate a whopping 20% of all net sales from prize draw entries to the RSPB!

So if you would like to treat yourself, or a loved one, to something special this Christmas and make a contribution to nature conservation while you are at it, we would be really grateful if you would consider clicking here and purchasing a bottle or two of this fine drop

But don’t just take our word for it, have a listen to wildlife TV presenter Iolo Williams verdict above!

Note: all botanicals harvested from Ramsey are done in accordance with the reserve management plan, taken from areas that are to be mowed (in the case of the heather) or dredged (in the case of the water mint) for the conservation benefit of heathland and the ponds that support nationally scarce water plants

Prize draw offer is subject to local lockdown restrictions in 2021. All efforts will be made to allow the winter to redeem the prize in 2021 and it can be carried over into 2022 if this is not possible