Plymouth Gin

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Plymouth Gin is a brand of Gin made in Plymouth, United Kingdom. The Plymouth Gin Distillery is located in what was once a monastery built in 1431 by the Black Friars and it has been in operation since 1793. The gin is 41.2% alcohol by volume. There is also a 'navy strength' variety available which is 57% abv. The company also produces Plymouth sloe gin, Plymouth Fruit Cup and a damson liqueur. If one looks through a contemporary bottle of the standard strength variety one can see a depiction of one of the monastery's friars on the inside of the back label.

The reason the friar has been placed on the bottle is that the place where Plymouth gin is made was previously a Franciscan monastery. On the front of the bottle is the ship, "The Mayflower", this is because when the Pilgrim Fathers set out for their journey to the new world, bad sea conditions forced them to stay the night in the Franciscan monastery where plymouth is now made.

The Navy Strength moniker comes from the level of alcohol. At 57% abv or higher spirits can be spilt onto gunpowder without impairing its ability to explode.