The Gin Guild aims to make Gin-Note the world’s best-known distilled gin flavour profiler and guidance for consumers and retailers and wider audiences.
Gin-Note is the proprietary form of visual and ancillary notation framework designed and prepared and copyright to the Gin Guild and intended for the purposes of describing the flavour and taste profiles of participating gin brands for the education of and information to consumers, retailers and wider audiences.
Gin-Note is designed to provide users with a standard interpretation in consistent form of the flavour and profile of a distilled gin regardless of botanical content or production methodology.
Brand owners that are authorised to use Gin-Note to describe their products have the benefit of this framework and methodology providing users with an easily comprehensible profile based on a combination of a graphical notation with supporting notations.
This allows information and education about the profiles of one gin brand from another. It allows brands to establish meaningful differentiation within the marketplace based on the gin producers interpretation of their brand rather than being based on mere marketing puff or (worse still), just based on the relative attractiveness of one bottle design over another.
The Gin Guild intends to work to ensure that the value of Gin-Note is established and highly regarded across the world. It represents a long-term commitment to quality product education and information in the gin industry.
The Gin Guild only recognises and permits use of Gin-Note to describe distilled gin made fully in accordance with the EU Spirit Regulations so far as they apply to gin from time to time.
In these Conditions:
‘Gin Guild’ means The Gin Guild Limited ‘Company’ means the gin brand owner submitting gin brand information to the Gin Guild for the purposes of completion and preparation and subsequent use of the Gin-Note for that gin brand and submission of the same shall be deemed acceptance of the terms of the Conditions of Use and the Code of Practice
‘Gin-Note means the proprietary form of visual and ancillary notation framework designed and prepared and copyright to the Gin Guild intended for the purposes of describing the flavour and taste profiles of participating gin brands for the education of and information to consumers, retailers and wider audiences.
- The Company warrants that the submitted gin brand is a distilled gin made fully in accordance with the EU Spirit Regulations so far as they apply to gin from time to time.
- The Company warrants that the details supplied to complete Gin-Note are true and accurate and a reasonable interpretation, based on the structure and options set out, to describe the submitted gin brand.
- The Company shall ensure that the submitted gin brand information supplied is kept up to date at all times and that any amendments in production, botanicals ABV or bottle design etc. will be promptly notified to the Guild in writing at info@theginguild.com
- The Company will observe the conditions of use applicable to the use of Gin-Note and the Gin-Note Code of Practice
- The Company will ensure that any use of Gin-Note by the Company or authorised by the Company or third parties promoting, supplying, distributing or selling the submitted gin brand (express or implied) shall be in full compliance with these the Conditions of Use and shall use and reproduce Gin-Note in the same image, font, colours, layout, scaling of individual elements (within the agreed scope and scoring only), and content (including that it is copyright to the Gin Guild and that the content is provided by the brand) as that produced by the Gin Guild based on the submission by the Company i.e. in the form downloaded from the Gin Guild website as produced for and of the submitted gin brand
- The Company agrees that, in the event that material comment is received querying or objecting to the given interpretation or any part thereof, that where reasonably required (and in the interests only of ensuring that the flavour guidance offered is perceived as a useful and accurate method of describing the product) it will use all reasonable endeavours to promptly reassess the product amending or reviewing the description where required so as to ensure correction of any defective application of the flavour guidance. In cases where an issue is left unresolved or a response is delayed the Guild may refer the issue to the Guild Board who shall (with not less than three from their number, or suitable proxies appointed by them, all being of suitable industry knowledge and experience), seek to settle the issue provided that any outcome of that referral shall be notified in writing to the Company and a reasonable time given to allow their response comment etc. before the Guild amends the data for public viewing.
- The Company agrees that the Gin Guild may use data submitted in this application subject to their Privacy Policy (see web site) and for all reasonable purposes relating to the Gin Graphic and its use and deployment for the purposes of educating, training and advising the public and trade as to gin and styles and flavours.
- The Company agrees that to ensure protection of reputation of Gin-Note as a quality and accurate endorsement that the Gin Guild may take action to remove from or prevent use of Gin-Note from sub-standard or counterfeit products, and notes that the Gin Guild may publicise non-compliance with these conditions.
- The Company agrees that the Gin Guild must retain the respect and confidence of the public and the gin trade and industry and that to keep this respect and confidence all those using the Gin Graphic must maintain the highest possible ethical standards in their business transactions.
- The Company agrees and recognises that as a user of Gin-Note that it is expected to maintain the highest possible standards in respect of the gin trade and industry (‘the Industry’), even in those cases not specifically addressed by these Conditions of Use and the Code of Practice.
- The Company agrees that it will at all times represent their gin products via the Gin Graphic in an honest manner, disclosing all necessary and germane information, promoting their products in a positive way and striving to practice the highest possible degree of professionalism within the industry and shall comply with the Code of Practice.
- The Company agrees that failure to adhere to these Conditions of Use and the Code of Practice may result them being prohibited with immediate effect from using or displaying Gin-Note (in any form)
- The Company agrees that the proper and reasonable costs incurred by the Gin Guild in the investigation and enforcement of these provisions will, where it has been found to be in breach, shall be to their cost and agrees that it shall be required to settle those costs within 15 working days of having been advised and shall also bear the costs of any recovery proceedings required to enforce that debt.
- The Company agrees that use of Gin-Note should adhere to usage guidelines for colour, size and content. The Gin Guild can advise on the correct usage of the Guild Logo/Guild Logos, and provide master references for use.
Gin-Note Code of Practice
- It is the duty of the Company to protect the reputation of the Industry and to that end it shall not commit fraud, misrepresentation, or use unethical practices in related business transactions and avoid exaggeration or concealment of any pertinent facts.
- The Company should endeavour to eliminate any practice within its business which could be damaging to the Industry or bring discredit to its trade.
- The Company must adhere to all statutes laws and legislation both in their own jurisdictions and in all markets where they are selling their gin product, insofar as they apply to gin or its description by specific category and for the avoidance of doubt the definitions of Distilled Gin and London Dry Gin (‘Compliant Product’) shall be exclusively applied only to such of their gin products as meet the definitions laid down for such categories from time to time by the European Union (currently Regulation (EC) No 110.2008 of the European Parliament and the Council of 15 January 2008 as amended). No use shall be made of the Gin Graphic or any similar graphical representation for any gin product that is not a Compliant Product.
- The Company shall not in any way defame, criticise, undermine, or take unfair advantage of another producers’ reputation or gin product, in order to promote and sell their own gin product.
- No gin product must be misrepresented as to its nature, authenticity, treatment, origin, definition, description, botanical content or process.
- Gin-Note shall only be in the form provided and approved by the Gin Guild downloaded from the Guild website.
Useful links:
Gin-Note™ – an introduction
Gin-Note™ – Guide for Brand owners
Submit a Gin-Note™ entry