ARKLE, Red Rum and Yeats are among the racing legends honoured on the labels of a special edition bottle of Drumshanbo Gunpowder Irish Gin which has just been released.

The Shed Distillery hopes the marketing ploy is going to prove a winner not just for Cheltenham but also with Chinese visitors passing through Dublin and Cork airports, in what is the Chinese Lunar New Year of the Horse.

Only on sale for three months, the bottle will hit shelves in over 100 countries and airports across the world over the coming months.

Drumshanbo Gunpowder Irish Gin is slow-distilled by hand at The Shed Distillery in Drumshanbo, Co Leitrim which now employs over 100 people.

Nina Carberry MEP joined Gunpowder Gin founder Pat Rigney at Dublin Airport for the launch of the limited-edition ceramic bottle.

They were joined by Dr YuPeng Liu, chairman of the Industry and Commerce Association of Ireland (ICAOI), who said that Gunpowder Gin has been going from strength to strength in the Chinese market.

“With the Year of the Horse symbolising energy, ambition, and prosperity, we are confident Gunpowder will continue to expand across key regions in China and achieve even greater success this year,” he added.

Priced at €44.95 for 700mls, bottles arealso available online.

Web: thesheddistillery.com