BOMBAY SAPPHIRE® Reinstates Water Turbine on River Test at its Laverstoke Mill Distillery

Water wheel provides high, reliable and free power to light state-of-the art gin visitor centre and displays

The renovation plan for the BOMBAY SAPPHIRE® Distillery at Laverstoke Mill got the sustainability wheels turning as teams figured out how to reinstate the former paper mill's water turbine to once again harness the power of clean energy. Now operational, the refurbished water turbine provides green energy to power the new distillery's state-of-the-art visitor centre, and all of its displays, at the restored facility, which recently opened to the public in October.

For hundreds of years, the historic Laverstoke Mill bustled with industry as it churned out the paper needed to make bank notes for the British Empire. Ingenuity of the 19th century captured the power of nature at the heart of the mill as its turbine motorized the belts and pulleys needed to bring the factory's machines to life. The mill's automated inner-working parts pumped with a rhythm, animating the buildings with the lifeblood current from the River Test, which always provided an abundant flow of unfailing water power.

With years of disuse, Laverstoke Mill fell into disrepair, and its engine, the original water wheel, was long gone—only a big hole remained in its place. The original turbine building stood lifeless, without its core, but redevelopment plans included designs to lovingly restore the heart of the property, to revive the buildings and bring industry back to the historic Laverstoke Mill site. The BOMBAY SAPPHIRE Distillery at Laverstoke Mill is the new brand home of BOMBAY SAPPHIRE, known for its production of the world's number one premium gin, and for being one of the most forward-thinking, sustainable gin brands in the world.

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