Hi, I’m Paul Allamby, and when I started my gin making journey, some seven years ago, I never imagined that it would culminate in the creation of a Canadian Brand that has won awards internationally and is now available online, in the LCBO in Ontario and the SAQ in Quebec.

Some 200 years before gin appeared in the UK, an earlier form of gin, genever, was being distilled in both Holland and Belgium.

During the War of the Spanish Succession, genever was given to British soldiers fighting in Holland, and became known as “Dutch courage”. These soldiers brought the juniper-flavoured spirit back with them to England.

Since I was born in London, England, you might have thought I’d be intent on creating a Canadian version of a London Dry gin, but my family history included a great-grandmother with Dutch roots, so we had Bols, Nolet and Advocaat in our home.

When I came to Toronto I fell in love with the wonderful mix of cultures, and so I decided that my gin would embrace, just like the Dutch and Belgian genevers had, herbs, flora and spices from all over the world.

Our name, Levenswater, is Dutch for Water of Life and we are proud of the shared heritage that our brand has with the traditions of 16th century Dutch and Belgian distillers.

Our gins are rooted here in Ontario but infused with a myriad of botanicals from all over the world, exotic and sensory, natural and pure.

It took me many years to arrive at the right destination but our Levenswater gin brand is built off of the same swirl of cultures that we are so proud of in Canada.

We are lucky enough to have won a number of international awards for our gins and gained a number of admirers along the way, for a gin that is both uniquely Canadian but also, imbued with flavours and aromatics from across the world.