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The highly anticipated Bubbly & Gin Summer Garden Party & Polo, taking place on 23 November at the luxurious Val de Vie Estate in Paarl, will not only feature many of South Africa’s best loved Cap Classiques, along with Taittinger Champagne and Andiamo Spritz, but it will also highlight a number of local craft gins that are making a name for themselves both locally and abroad.

One of these gins, and the most recent entrant to the market, is diOxygin which, despite having been in the market for less than a year, has already picked up four major awards including silver at the world-renowned 2024 Intercontinental Spirits Challenge; silver at the prestigious 2024 Aurora International Taste Challenge; silver at the 2024 Lumo Awards; and another silver at the Vitis Vinifera Awards, one of the longest-running and most prestigious competitions in South Africa.

The story of diOxygin begins in the humble farming town of Patensie in the Eastern Cape, a place filled with citrus groves and a deep sense of community. This is where founder, Lindie Ferreira Cillié, grew up with her five siblings, learning about life, citrus, sacrifice and - above all - love.

“My parents, Espie (SP) and Hilda Ferreira, were the heart of the family,” she says, “and they were, in so many ways, the oxygen of their community, always ready with a helping hand, a kind word and love to share with everyone they crossed paths with. They essentially breathed life into everything and everyone around them.”

In June 2021, Ferriera Cillié lost her parents to Covid, both taken just five days apart due to a lack of oxygen and so, inspired by their vibrant lives and love for their community, the idea for a citrus and spekboom infused gin was born.

“I really wanted the essence of Espie, a devoted citrus farmer and Hilda, whose life bloomed alongside the spekboom in her beautiful garden, to be remembered so I decided that both ingredients had to be an integral part of the gin.

“The leaves of the spekboom have a pleasantly tart, citrusy flavour similar to lemon, while the mandarins we use, grown on the family farm, offer a balance of sweetness, refreshment and a touch of complexity, perfectly complementing the overall taste profile.”

Once she had determined the two essential ingredients she wanted to incorporate into the gin, the name came easy.

“Signifying ‘two,’ the ‘di’ in diOxygin represents not only the two key botanicals but also my mom and dad, whose enduring legacy forms the very foundation of the gin. Further, in nature, the spekboom plant acts as a carbon sponge, reducing our carbon footprint and fighting climate change by absorbing CO² and generating life-giving oxygen. And then of course the play on the word gin that results in the name diOxygin.”

With the ingredients and the name in place Ferriera Cillié began the process of bringing her dream to life.

“We started off with a unique gin aperitif, but as time ticked by, we decided to evolve from an aperitif to a top-notch gin brand, which meant improving clarity by removing natural sediments, and increasing the alcohol percentage while maintaining the refreshing citrus taste.

The change also came with a brand new label and logo design.

“Our new label still proudly shows off our key ingredients but, in a symbolic move, we opted for a clean aesthetic by placing the entire label on the back of the bottle, leaving the front crystal-clear to represent our brand transparency and pure ingredients.

The gin is distilled by the Eastern Cape-based Brickmakers Distilling Co., chosen for its proximity to the farm where the ingredients are sourced and prepared, ensuring a local 'farm-to-bottle' process.

“Another important reason we partnered with them, other than their expertise, is that they share our vision of giving back to the community.

"Through our brand and our slogan, ‘Life in Abundance,’ we aim to inspire everyone to appreciate every moment, create memories with loved ones and support their communities.

Each moment is precious, and together, we hope to cultivate a spirit of giving and living abundantly. We also encourage individuals to contribute to a greener planet by planting spekboom, so that future generations can enjoy a life of abundance.

“Our vision is to donate a portion of our proceeds towards filling oxygen bottles for local old age homes. With this heartfelt story, we encourage you to savour each day, sharing laughter and creating memories with loved ones – that’s the true essence of living life abundantly.”

For more details on diOxygin visit https://dioxygin.co.za/

To taste (and buy) this delightfully citrusy gin, visit the Bubbly & Gin Summer Garden Party & Polo taking place at the Val de Vie Estate in Paarl on Saturday, 23 November from 13h00 to 19h00. Tickets are available from Webtickets.