New Mexico distillery takes home awards at The Gin Masters competition

Tumbleroot Brewery and Distillery’s first foray into international gin tasting waters was a successful one, to say the least.

The Santa Fe-based establishment recently took home a trio of medals at The Gin Masters 2025 competition in the U.K. In the Cask Aged category, the distillery’s Navy Strength Gin took home Master Medal — the most prestigious honor — while its High Desert Gin and Botanical Gin both garnered silver medals in the Contemporary category.

While the Tumbleroot gins had already attracted significant interest from outside New Mexico, master distiller Jason Kirkman says it was the first time submitting the spirits to a competition of any kind.

“It’s a validation of what we’re doing. I think what we’re doing is pretty cool, pretty different,” he said. “We use local, wild harvested juniper berries from our property, which is a different type of juniper than most gins are made with. And it gives it kind of a fruity, less piney, resiny flavor. We also try to keep all the other ingredients in balance with the juniper and not have it kind of be way out front with everything else in the background.”

Founded in 2018, Tumbleroot boasts a combined distillery and production space that allows it to make a wide variety of beers, spirits, liqueurs, bitters and canned cocktails. The production aspect is a significant source of pride within the facility.

“We do it from scratch where we start with a piece of our gin … It requires a 20-plate distillation column, but we are able to bring the proof of our spirits to near purity,” Kirkman said.

“There’s over 190, in fact, 191 proofs to get a true neutral spirit. So that from-scratch philosophy, I think, is even if it comes with extra work and even if it’s an extra expense compared to buying it from this baggage item, we’re committed to doing that in-house. So that is not only the story, but I think some love and admiration, but also we very much control the quality of that product.”

The critically acclaimed Navy Strength Gin originally came about, Kirkman says, by request from a local bartender. The spirit is barrel-aged with a higher proof to make it a versatile mixer, and the use of Indian chai tea as a template gives it an especially distinct flavor. In addition to the homegrown juniper berries, the Navy Gin is distilled with coriander, ginger, cinnamon, orris root, Darjeeling tea, licorice root, vanilla bean, black pepper, green cardamom and allspice.

That type of innovation extends to the other award winners, as well. The High Desert Gin is inspired by a Thai pomelo salad, which gives it a blend of citrusy and spicy tastes. The Botanical Gin, meanwhile, gets much of its flavor — including a variety of flowers, herbs and spices — from the Kirkman family garden and includes ingredients such as lavender, hibiscus, jasmine and sage.

“I think our gins are all very different, and I think that’s kind of why people are drawn to them,” Kirkman said. “It’s flavors that are totally different from any gins they’ve tried, and they lend themselves to different cocktails and fun ideas.”