Six Dogs Karoo was the very first gin to come out of Six Dogs Distillery. It took exactly 187 iterations and over two years of trials to get this gin perfectly balanced and to our liking. It’s also because of Six Dogs Karoo’s sudden success that the Six Dogs team was invited to take up the international bursary spot at Junipalooza gin festival in London in 2018.

A modern classic gin with a big juniper heart, Six Dogs Karoo is a delicate and balanced gin of twelve select botanicals. Its distinguishing botanicals are grown on our farm, which intersects three different bioregions, including the succulent Karoo, a vast semi-arid region that’s home to some of the world’s richest succulent flora. It is from here that we gather the Karoo thorn flower and wild lavender that make this gin unique. Subtle citrus notes are introduced through the inclusion of limes, mandarins and farm-grown lemon buchu.

A dusty and well-worn dirt track, somewhere on the fringes of the otherwise endless and arid Karoo region in South Africa, leads to an oasis of indescribable beauty. Close to the tiny village of De Wet, but not too far from the major highway between Cape Town and Johannesburg, this is the home of Six Dogs Distillery, one of South Africa’s most renowned boutique gin distilleries.

Arrive at the farm where the Distillery is situated and be prepared for an unusual welcome: six canines – four large and gentle Great Danes and two smaller dogs – all demanding your attention, which is inevitably drawn to the circle of mountains and the line of trees that surround this perfect little valley. They will accompany you too to the stoep or verandah area where you will be able to take in the spectacular views while sipping on a range of delicate hand-crafted gins.

“Because we could” is the obvious answer from Charles Bryant, Master Distiller and one of the original founders of Six Dogs, when you ask why this former capital markets trader and serial entrepreneur turned his hand to perfecting the art of gin distillation. But that simple answer belies a fascinating story of how a business born in a shed on the farm where the dogs sleep (hence the name) only seven years ago spawned one of the most well known gin brands in South Africa and one that now has a presence in some thirty countries around the world.