Mighty Oaks from Little Acorns Grow…..
In Wales we have the concept of the “milltir sqwâr- an intimate knowledge and connection with a sense of place. Living on a farm, we are conscious of our how interconnected our environment is. But is there anything more that we could do?
Being organic has always been important to us and the celebration of Organic September caused us to pause and think more about what we do, and what being organic really means to us. We have striven to ensure that our gin productions causes no environmental harm.
Then the acorn dropped. One balmy, golden September evening as we took Llwyd for a walk, we were admiring the many mature oak trees that fill our hedges and boundaries. We commented that there were no saplings, that these oaks, probably over 100 year old have never managed to reproduce. Why? Well we can only assume that grazing and agriculture has to be to blame; no young sapling would stand a chance against sheep, cattle and tractors.
We continued to walk, sometimes talking, sometimes in silence as our brains whirred – if nature needed a hand then we absolutely had to do it! This was the next step- not only looking after the land but proactively nurturing new growth.
We hurriedly gathered over 100 acorns and have potted them up and now we wait. Maybe in 3 years’ time we will have many oak saplings that we can give away to anyone who wants one to be planted and enjoyed for the next 100 years.
Small scale, making a difference, and doing what we can- that is our philosophy here at Jin Talog. Mighty oaks from little ideas grow – indeed.
We continue to produce our 3 star Great Taste award winning gin and so whatever your local restrictions, Jin Talog is still available by post via our online shop: www.jintalog.wales/shop
Stay safe, everyone!
David and Anthony
