Gin Lane Festival is a unique fusion of music and a tasting festival dedicated to gin and other premium spirits. The festival traditionally begins at sunset, starting at 7:00 PM, on the rooftop terrace of Skopje City Mall, creating an urban, atmospheric setting. The rooftop will be transformed with exhibition stands featuring gin producers, spirit brands, and related products, offering visitors a rich and immersive festival experience.

The inspiration behind Gin Lane Festival is deeply rooted in the history of gin itself. King William III of England, also known as William of Orange, is credited with bringing gin to England after leading the English army back from the front. He introduced the concept of “Dutch Courage,” a term used to describe the bravery Dutch soldiers gained from drinking gin before battle, a spirit believed to have both courage-boosting and medicinal properties. Along with it, he introduced the key ingredient of gin—juniper—to English soil.

Gin’s popularity continued to rise under Queen Anne, a devoted gin enthusiast, who reduced taxes on gin production and allowed unlicensed distilleries to operate. This decision enabled gin to dominate a market previously controlled by expensive French brandy. As a result, gin became widely accessible—eventually even cheaper than beer—while production remained largely unregulated in terms of quality and alcohol content.

This era, known as the Gin Craze of the early 18th century, marked a dark chapter in English history. Excessive gin consumption led to widespread alcoholism, social decay, and alarming mortality rates, including the deaths of an estimated 70% of newborn children in certain areas. At the time, the average person consumed up to 10 liters of gin per year. This societal collapse was famously depicted by William Hogarth in his iconic artwork Gin Lane, portraying the devastating effects of uncontrolled gin consumption, including the haunting image of Mary Estwick dropping her infant while intoxicated.

The Gin Craze period was also documented by writer Henry Fielding, and eventually led to legislative intervention through the Gin Act of 1736, which introduced taxes and production licenses. Despite this, illegal gin sales continued through secret mechanisms—such as selling gin through small openings in doors—highlighting the law’s initial inefficiency (only two licenses were issued at the time). A revised Gin Act followed in 1751, driven in part by rising grain prices.

Today, Gin Lane has been reinterpreted countless times in modern, positive contexts—New Gin Lane, Hipster Gin Lane, Hendrick’s Gin Lane, Gin Lane in Lockdown—and the name lives on through brands, bars, and streets worldwide. Gin Lane Festival draws its inspiration from this iconic artwork and its powerful story, reimagining gin not as a symbol of excess, but as a celebration of culture, craftsmanship, music, and shared experience.