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November 4, 2016

Over in the West End, it’s bye bye to BoBar and hello to beGin, the new bar at Hilton Glasgow Grosvenor.

As the name suggests, all things gin are at the heart of the new look bar.

Some 68 varieties of gins from all over the world are lined up on the shelves at beGin.

Plymouth Gin is the house pour and Monkey 47 – made in Germany’s Black Forest – will be used in a number of unique cocktails.

Of course, craft beers and wines are also available.

Exotic gins

Among the more exotic gins available are The Broadside, a Navy-strength gin from the West Winds range. Produced in Australia, it’s infused with sea parsley and sea salt.

The same producers also make The Sabre which uses toasted Australian wattle seed as one of its botanicals.

The 5pm Dining blog couldn’t tell a toasted Australian wattle seed from, well, any other sort of seed but we are told that it lends a distinct creaminess to the gin and we will be sampling it very soon.

We also like the sound of the Limbeck gin from the Welsh distillers Eccentric.

Like gin? They got it.

Like gin? They got it.

Mixing blue ginger and citrus with tarragon, Seville orange and orris, it is rested in recycled Burgundy French Oak casks to develop a smooth texture.

Apparently, the oak casks leave a subtle peach colour which varies subtly with each batch.

Perfect Serve

Nitin Ramtri, general manager, Hilton Glasgow Grosvenor, said: ‘This is a hugely exciting time for us. Gin bars are becoming more and more popular and we were keen to bring the first one to Glasgow’s West End. This new bar gives us the opportunity to introduce the ‘beGIN Perfect Serve’ to our customers.

‘Not only will the gin connoisseur and the beGINner be able to choose from our extensive range of 68 gins, they will also have a choice of twelve mixers and 28 garnishes. Our expert staff will be able to suggest ways to create the beGIN Perfect Serve, using ingredients suggested by both our gin companies and ourselves.

‘We also want our customers to get creative and use their GINtuition to create their very own Perfect Serve from our selection of gins, mixers and garnishes.’

A food menu is available in the bar providing small bites, sharing boards, burgers and salads, and ice cream sundaes.

Big Deals at Bo’Vine

We would also draw your attention to the rather tasty Big Deals which are currently running with Bo’Vine, the sister restaurant to beGin.

This one is £46 for two people to each have an 8oz sirloin steak; a half-grilled lobster served with garlic butter, triple cooked chips, vine tomatoes and a glass of Prosecco.

This one is £39 for two people to each have a fillet steak with triple cooked chips with a Béarnaise or peppercorn sauce plus a Passionate Daiquiri cocktail.

Finally, this one is £40 for two people to share a Chateaubriand steak accompanied by tiger prawn skewers, garlic butter, triple cooked chips and a glass of sparkling wine each.