Rhubarb has long been celebrated in Orkney, with traditional recipes for preserves and home baking dating back hundreds of years. In the 18th century, rhubarb was grown as a crop in the UK and Scandinavia, linking Orkney to both its Nordic routes, and its close connections to Scotland. Nowadays, rhubarb grows ‘wild’ in Orkney. You’re likely to find it growing in the unused garden of a derelict farmhouse, or alongside an Orcadian stone 'dyke' (wall) following a track road used only as access to fields. The larger patches of rhubarb are sometimes looked after by farmers and you can often harvest the same patch up to three times each summer. At Orkney Gin Company we like to keep our ingredients as traditional as possible, using hand-picked rose petals to complement our Rhubarb. Rhubarb is a tart vegetable (although some would confuse it as a fruit due to its delicious taste), meaning the sweeter taste of an Old Tom works perfectly with our zingy, zesty Orcadian delight.
