“Il Gin del Vicolo” Celebrates Four Years in a Hidden Trastevere Garden

Bay laurel, rosemary, and Roman mint are familiar ingredients in the city’s kitchens. They also help define Il Gin del Vicolo, a locally produced spirit that draws its identity from Rome’s culinary traditions. On Friday, October 23, 2026, the brand will celebrate its fourth anniversary with an evening in the garden of Donna Camilla Savelli, on Via Garibaldi in Trastevere.

Scheduled from 6:30 to 10:30 p.m., the event will bring together a signature cocktail made with Il Gin del Vicolo and four specialties from the Chiostro kitchen. Attendance is limited, with advance reservations required. For visitors interested in discovering contemporary Roman products alongside the city’s architectural heritage, the evening offers an opportunity to explore both in the same setting.

Roman Botanicals in a London Dry Gin

Il Gin del Vicolo is a London Dry gin bottled at 42% alcohol by volume, with no added sugar. According to the producer, it is distilled in Rome in a batch still using a water-bath technique. Its botanical selection brings juniper together with herbs associated with Roman cooking, including bay laurel, mentuccia romana, and rosemary, alongside pepper and ginger. ilgindelvicolo.it

These ingredients provide a useful starting point for understanding the project. Rather than choosing Rome simply as a name or an image for the label, the brand has looked to the city’s food culture for the character of its spirit. The aromatic plants that season a dish become part of a different composition, developed through distillation.

The producer describes a juniper-led profile accompanied by mint and rosemary notes, with pepper and ginger contributing further complexity. Those are the brand’s tasting descriptions, rather than impressions from an independent tasting, but they indicate what guests can look for when trying the anniversary cocktail. ilgindelvicolo.it

From a Gift to the First Bottles

The project began with a gift from friends in July 2021: a bottle of gin that prompted its recipient to consider creating a spirit of his own. In the founder’s account, the ambition was to make something closely connected to his city, conceived, distilled, and bottled in Rome.

Research into the botanicals followed, including visits to a historic herbal shop near Piazza Venezia. An initial selection of around 30 ingredients was narrowed to 15 for the first distillery experiments. Fourteen rounds of distillation and tasting preceded the final recipe, completed on April 21, 2022, the date on which Rome traditionally celebrates its founding.

Commercial production followed later that year. The first batch comprised 680 bottles, and the first sale took place on October 17, 2022, when the online store opened. The anniversary evening therefore marks four years since the gin first reached customers. Gin artigianale distillato a Roma L

The bottle carries another reference to the city: an image of a statue from Ponte Sant’Angelo. Alongside its angular shape, that detail gives the product a recognizable Roman identity before the bottle is opened. Gin artigianale distillato a Roma L

A Garden Within Baroque Rome

Donna Camilla Savelli adds a different chapter of Roman history to the evening. The property occupies part of the former monastic complex of Santa Maria dei Sette Dolori, at the foot of the Janiculum Hill.

Its origins lie in the seventeenth century. Around 1641, Camilla Virginia Savelli Farnese commissioned the complex, entrusting the work to Francesco Borromini, one of the central figures of Roman Baroque architecture. Construction stopped in 1655 because of a lack of funds, leaving the brick facade unfinished. Part of the former monastery was subsequently restored and converted into a hotel. orsinisavelli.it

That history makes the location worth considering beyond its role as an event venue. Trastevere is often experienced through its streets, restaurants, and busy squares. Here, an internal garden offers access to a more secluded setting within the neighborhood, where the former convent’s enclosed spaces remain part of the experience.

The hotel’s own presentation emphasizes this relationship between the quiet of the historic property and the life of the surrounding district. Its garden, courtyards, and terraces form part of a place whose character is closely tied to its earlier use. For the anniversary event, the organizers have chosen the garden as the setting for the aperitivo. VRetreats

A Cocktail and Four Culinary Specialties

The evening’s format centers on a signature cocktail prepared with Il Gin del Vicolo, accompanied by four specialties from the Chiostro kitchen. The announcement does not specify the cocktail recipe or the dishes, so the exact flavors and combinations remain to be discovered.

For guests, the appeal is straightforward: an introduction to a Roman craft spirit, food served alongside it, and time in a historic garden. The setting also gives the brand’s local focus a tangible context. A gin inspired by the city’s culinary herbs will be served within a building that belongs to another, much older layer of Rome.

The occasion follows the Italian tradition of the aperitivo, the early-evening meeting over drinks and something to eat. Here, that familiar ritual becomes the framework for a small anniversary celebration, with a limited number of places rather than open admission.

How to Attend

The fourth-anniversary celebration takes place on Friday, October 23, 2026, from 6:30 to 10:30 p.m., at Donna Camilla Savelli, Via Garibaldi 27, Rome.

Participation costs €30 per person, including admission and the aperitivo described by the organizers: a signature cocktail and four culinary specialties. Advance booking is required, and attendance is limited.

For information and reservations, contact Il Gin del Vicolo via WhatsApp at +39 376 1029504, or send a direct message through the brand’s social media channels.