Land, Water, Sky: A Taste of Place with The Botanist Gin
Landscapes shape us. They influence how we feel, how we think, and how we move through the world. The environments we step into, whether for a moment or for a season, pull different versions of ourselves to the surface. Each one carries its own energy, its own emotional resonance. Some calm us. Some awaken us. Some remind us of who we are. And perhaps, just as importantly, they reveal what we need most in this moment.
At Room + Wild, we explore this connection through three elemental pillars: land, water, and sky. Land roots us in the ground beneath our feet, a reminder of stability, heritage, and place. Water flows through us like movement and renewal, shaping experiences that are ever-changing yet eternal. Sky lifts our gaze upward, an expanse of possibility that stirs imagination and perspective. Together, these pillars define how we see the world, and how we invite others to experience it.
“Landscapes shape us. They influence how we feel, how we think, and how we move through the world. The environments we step into, whether for a moment or for a season, pull different versions of ourselves to the surface. Each one carries its own energy, its own emotional resonance. Some calm us. Some awaken us. Some remind us of who we are. And perhaps, just as importantly, they reveal what we need most in this moment.”
As part of our partnership with The Botanist Gin, made at B Corp certified Bruichladdich Distillery on Islay, we worked with their Global Brand Ambassador and food and drink extraordinaire, Abi Clehphane, to create a series of cocktails and food pairings inspired by our landscape pillars to capture the essence of each element. Just as our featured hotels are shaped by their environments, these drinks are infused with a sense of place: rooted, fluid, and expansive. Each pour becomes a reminder that landscapes can be tasted as well as seen, that their character can live on the palate as much as in memory.
The Botanist Gin shares Room + Wild’s belief in sustainability, stewardship, and beauty rooted in the natural world. Distilled on the Isle of Islay with 22 hand-foraged botanicals, it reflects our commitment to honouring the land and living in harmony with it. Together, we celebrate the places and practices that safeguard fragile ecosystems while creating rituals that connect us to the landscapes we love.
WATER
Water: Emotional, Fluid, Restorative
Water has a way of pulling us inward, inviting a presence that is hard to find in our daily life. Lakes, rivers, oceans, and hot springs call us to slow down, to soften, to listen. Their movement mirrors our breath, their rhythms sync with our heartbeat, offering a natural lullaby that settles the mind. To be near water is to step into a different register of being, one where time stretches, thoughts loosen, and emotions surface more easily. It is primal, deeply human, a reminder of where we came from and what still sustains us. Water carries energy without demanding control; it flows, shifts, adapts, and in doing so teaches us to move with change rather than resist it. It creates a space for reflection, for vulnerability, for memory. Whether standing ankle-deep in a cold fjord, floating weightless in a warm spring, or listening to waves collapse against the shore, water reshapes us into a quieter, truer version of ourselves.
The element’s fluidity and openness are captured in a cocktail that pairs the briny clarity of a dirty martini with the fire-kissed richness of barbecue fish tacos. It’s a sensory echo of water itself, translated into a ritual meant to be savored slowly.
“As part of our partnership with The Botanist Gin, made at B Corp certified Bruichladdich Distillery on Islay, we worked to create a series of cocktails and food pairings inspired by our landscape pillars to capture the essence of each element. Just as our featured hotels are shaped by their environments, these drinks are infused with a sense of place: rooted, fluid, and expansive. ”
Dirty Martini + BBQ Fish Tacos
Tofino, Canada
BBQ Fish Tacos
Ingredients
2 Fillets of white fish (haddock or cod)
Juice of one lime
Pinch of chilli flakes
Pinch of cumin
Pinch of paprika
Salt and pepper
Dash of olive oil
Method
Mix everything together, except the fish. Once the marinade is made, coat the fish evenly and marinate for 30 minutes. BBQ each side of 3 or 4 minutes. Serve on warm corn tacos with guacamole, pico de gallo and hot sauce.
Dirty Martini
Ingredients
75ml The Botanist Gin
5ml Fino sherry
10ml Olive brine
Olives
Method
Chill your Nick and Nora glass. Fill a mixing glass with 2/3 good quality ice. Add all the ingredients and stir continuously for at least 30 seconds to allow the ingredients to chill and dilute slightly, strain into a Nick and Nora and garnish with olives.
LAND
Land: Grounding, Sensory, Centering
If water calls us to feel, land calls us to stay. It anchors us physically, emotionally, and energetically, reminding us that we belong to something solid and enduring. There is comfort in walking through an old forest, stretching out on sun-warmed stone, or pausing in the stillness of an open field. The earth offers weight, texture, and scent—soil, moss, pine, dust—that draw us back into our senses and slow us down to the pace of the natural world. Unlike the constant motion of water or the lofty reach of mountains, land is stabilizing. To be barefoot on sand or to press a hand to tree bark is to engage in an elemental dialogue that restores calm, reminding us that its strength is our own. In its quiet immensity, land gathers us back to ourselves, steady and whole.
Land finds its expression in flavor, texture, and ritual. Its steadiness is distilled into the bold Red Snapper cocktail, a drink rooted in earth’s richness and paired with the primal depth of beef tartare. Together, they echo the grounding qualities of land, reminding us that taste, like soil beneath our feet, can anchor us in the present.
Red Snapper + Steak Tartare
Mu Cang Chai, Yenbai, Vietnam
Steak Tartare
Ingredients
200g good quality fillet steak, finely diced
1 shallot finely diced
Small handful flat parsley finely diced
Couple of dashes of hot sauce
Teaspoon Dijon mustard
Teaspoon capers diced
4 cornichons diced
Egg yolk
Method
Mix everything and serve on a plate with an egg yolk in the middle. Enjoy with a baguette or French fries.
Red Snapper
Ingredients
40ml The Botanist Gin
10 Dashes Lea and Perrins Worcester Sauce
4 Dashes hot sauce
Pinch salt
Teaspoon of brine from pickled chillies or pickles
15ml Lemon juice
100ml good quality tomato juice
Celery
Cucumber
Pickled cherry tomato
Method
Build in a tall glass with ice and garnish with celery, cucumber and pickled chilli tomato on a skewer.
MOUNTAINS + SKY
Mountains and Sky: Expansive, Aspirational, Transformative
Mountains are landscapes of ambition and perspective, calling us to rise, to imagine more, and to see further than before. Gaining elevation shifts more than the view; it alters the way we think, expanding our frame of reference and revealing how far we have come and how far we might still go. These environments do not offer comfort easily; they ask for endurance, effort, and a willingness to stand exposed, yet in return, they strip away the unnecessary and leave only clarity. To be high above, surrounded by silence and sky, is to feel both humbled and empowered. In this rarefied air, the sky becomes a symbol of possibility, a canvas for aspiration, and the mountains themselves awaken something determined, curious, and fiercely alive within us.
That same sense of elevation is captured in the Horizon Spritz cocktail: light, refined, and edged with possibility. Paired with whipped feta, it becomes a tasting ritual that mirrors the clarity and lift of high altitudes. Together, they speak to the boundless quality of mountains and sky, reminders that sometimes to rise above is to dream without limits.
Horizon Spritz + Whipped Feta Dip
Tre Cime peaks at sunset, Dolomites, Italy
Whipped Feta Dip
Ingredients
1 Block feta cheese
75ml Yoghurt
30ml Lemon juice
1 Garlic clove crushed or micro planed
Chilli flakes (if you’d like to add a hint of heat)
Pinch of salt and pepper to taste
Green herbs (parsley/mint/dill)
Toasted nuts
Olive oil
Cucumbers
Chilli oil
Method
Add everything to a food processor and pulse until creamy, or you can add everything to a bowl and use a stick blender. Garnish with chopped green herbs (parsley/mint/dill), toasted nuts, a drizzle of olive oil and cucumbers dressed in lemon vinaigrette and a teaspoon chilli oil (optional).
Horizon Spritz
Ingredients
40ml The Botanist
10ml Fino sherry
20ml lemon juice
15ml sugar syrup
Soda water or champagne to top
Mint sprig and lemon twist
Method
Pour The Botanist, Fino sherry, lemon juice and sugar syrup into a wine glass filled with ice and stir. Top with soda water or champagne.
“From its hand-foraged wild botanicals to its global biodiversity foundation to its B Corp leadership, The Botanist is a celebration of nature’s quiet complexity. A reminder that even the smallest island can offer something profound to the world.”
