Wales distillery In the Welsh Wind has recorded its best-ever sales after appearing on the Hairy Bikers Go Local TV series.
The Ceredigion distillery had a surge of interest in its spirits and its Welsh Cask Vinegar after the Hairy Bikers show aired on Thursday – resulting in a huge 400% increase in sales over the weekend compared to its peak Christmas trading.
Website traffic also hit a new high as viewers logged on to buy the vinegar. The Hairy Bikers duo of Si King and Dave Myers selected the vinegar as one of a trio of innovative local products to match with a neighbouring restaurant.
The distillery produced its first Welsh Cask Vinegar in 2021 using unsold beer that was going to be poured away due to the Covid-19 lockdowns.
A collaboration with Bluestone Brewing Co and Orkney Craft Vinegar produced the Welsh Cask Vinegar, which is softer and more complex on the palette, meaning it can be used in the kitchen, as a salad dressing and also in cocktails.
This versatility saw the distillery sell out of its entire stock almost instantly, while its award-winning Palo Cortado cask-aged gin and Dewi Sant gin also proved a big hit with online buyers.
In the Welsh Wind co-founder Ellen Wakelam said: “We have been truly overwhelmed by the response we had to our appearance on The Hairy Bikers Go Local.
“We spoke to some of the other businesses who had appeared on earlier episodes and they told us that they had seen a huge surge in demand – so we were ready.
“We took the precaution of pre-packing most of our vinegar for posting before the programme aired which gave us a head start but we still had an intensive day packing up all the orders we received – only to find that our courier’s van broke down!
“Thankfully, there wasn’t much impact and the orders are on their way to our customers!”
The Hairy Bikers Go Local series, which ran for eight consecutive nights on BBC 2 was filmed in July 2021.
In the Welsh Wind’s Welsh Cask Vinegar was introduced to the owners of The Stackpole Inn and head chef Matt Waldron, who sources local products for the gastro-pub menu.
After trying the Welsh Cask Vinegar, Matt said it was ‘100 percent’ something they would consider using.
Ellen added: “We enjoyed meeting Dave and Si and introducing the distillery to them. We hope through the show that more people will have enjoyed finding out about the distillery, our products and the area where we’re based.”
The distillery will be producing more of its Welsh Cask Vinegar to keep up with demand.
