Rebel City Distillery Tour Cork: Maharani Gin & Absinthe Tasting
The old Ford factory now makes Ireland's only Absinthe.
Rebel City Distillery Tour is a one-hour guided experience at Cork's first distillery in five decades, housed in a restored Ford Car Factory overlooking the River Lee. The founder leads you through the distillation process surrounded by Indian botanicals, then you taste Maharani Gin neat, Ireland's only Absinthe neat, and a gin and tonic of your choice. Minimum age is 18. The distillery is a 15-minute walk from Cork city centre and fully wheelchair accessible.
Step-by-step itinerary
Rebel City Distillery guided tour
- Walk to Rebel City Distillery
- Enjoy Gin and Tonic welcome drink
- Take guided distillery tour
- Learn about distillation process
- Taste Rebel City spirits
What’s included
- Guided tour led by the founder.
- one gin and tonic (50 mls or 200 mls, your choice).
- 25 mls of Maharani Gin neat.
- 25 mls of Ireland's only Absinthe neat.
Times
- Tuesday to Thursday 16:00
- Friday 15:45
- Saturday 14:00
Before you book
Operated by Rebel City Distillery
Prices and times updated today
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The experience
The distillery sits in a Cork landmark (the old Ford Car Factory in the docklands) that spent decades empty before Rebel City opened in 2020. You arrive with a gin and tonic already in hand and walk through the space where the founder, Robert, and his wife Bhagya, built a craft operation that draws on the building's industrial past. The aromas of Indian botanicals fill the rooms as you move through the tour, learning how the gin and absinthe are made. Bhagya sources botanicals from a women's organic farming co-operative in Kerala, India, which is also where Maharani Gin gets its name: a tribute to strong women and to the couple's own roots bridging Cork and Kerala.
The tasting comes at the end: you get 25 mls of Maharani Gin neat, 25 mls of Ireland's only Absinthe neat, and your choice of which Rebel City spirit to finish with in a full gin and tonic. The whole thing runs an hour, and the founder is there to answer questions about the process and the spirits themselves. It's a small operation in a building that matters to Cork's history, not a factory tour dressed up as one.
Is this one for you?Book this tour if you want a hands-on look at how a craft gin and absinthe are made in a real working distillery, not a visitor centre: the founder walks you through the process and the botanicals themselves, and the space is small enough that you can ask questions as you go.
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Top questions
What happens if it rains?
It may be canceled due to bad weather. If that happens, you're offered another date or a refund. Free cancellation up to 24 h before the start.
How far is Rebel City Distillery from Cork city centre?
Rebel City Distillery is a 15-minute walk from Cork city centre, in the restored Ford Car Factory in the docklands overlooking the River Lee.
What spirits do I taste on the Rebel City tour?
You taste Maharani Gin neat (25 mls), Ireland's only Absinthe neat (25 mls), and finish with a full gin and tonic made from any Rebel City spirit of your choice.
Who runs the Rebel City Distillery tour?
The founder leads the tour himself, so you learn the distillation process directly from Robert, who co-founded the distillery with his wife Bhagya in 2020.
Is the distillery wheelchair accessible?
Yes, Rebel City Distillery is fully wheelchair accessible. All areas, surfaces and transportation options to the venue are accessible.
What is Maharani Gin and why is it called that?
Maharani Gin is Rebel City's first release, created to celebrate the founders' roots in Cork, Ireland and Kerala, India. Maharani means queen and is a tribute to strong women everywhere, including the women's organic farming co-operative in Kerala where the botanicals are sourced.
What makes Rebel City's Absinthe unusual?
Rebel City makes Ireland's only Absinthe, a spirit you taste neat during the tour as part of the tasting selection.
Rebel City Distillery Tour Cork: Maharani Gin & Absinthe Tasting
1h · EN
from € 28 per person
≈ US$ 32 in your currency
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