The new arrangement will see Crabbie’s Gin become the Official Gin Partner of Scottish Rugby, while the governing body has also renewed its official partnership affiliation with Crabbie’s Ginger Beer, the UK’s number one selling alcoholic ginger beer.

David Brown, Managing Director of John Crabbie & Co, said: “We are really looking forward to working with Scottish Rugby.

“Crabbie’s is probably Edinburgh’s most iconic and enduring drinks brand and the association with Scottish Rugby at BT Murrayfield is a natural fit for us in our home city.

“The company is now investing heavily in Edinburgh. We opened the ‘Chain Pier distillery’ in Granton in 2018 and plan to open our second distillery in Leith in Autumn 2019.”

The sponsorship package includes pouring rights for Crabbie’s Alcoholic Ginger Beer and Crabbie’s Gins at BT Murrayfield Stadium, starting with Scotland’s first home game of the Summer Tests against France (Saturday 24 August) before heading to Japan in September.

Crabbie’s will also benefit from branding rights at Edinburgh Rugby. The new agreement will include advertising, pouring, sampling and hospitality for both international and Edinburgh home games.

John Kennedy, Commercial Controller for Halewood Wines and Spirits, which produces the Crabbie’s alcoholic Ginger Beer, said: “We are really pleased to renew our official partnership with Scottish Rugby and Edinburgh Rugby and look forward to continuing our very successful relationship for a further three years”

The Crabbie’s brand was established in Edinburgh in 1801 and John Crabbie rose to become one of the most pre-eminent and pioneering distillers in history.

The recipes for the new Crabbie’s Gin range being produced in Edinburgh are based on the originals found in the Crabbie’s archive dating back over 180 years and the names celebrate the dates that these were originally created by John Crabbie. These include the original Crabbie’s 1837 and Crabbie’s 1891 (Old Tom).

Brown added: “The Crabbie family connection with Scottish Rugby is as historic as our Gin recipes.

“The Scottish Rugby Union was founded in 1873 around the same time that Crabbie’s Gin was being created and two of John Crabbie’s grandsons played for Scotland. John (aka Jack) Edward Crabbie scored the winning try in a Calcutta cup match in March 1904 and his brother George Ernest Crabbie made his international debut against Wales in the same year, both playing on the wing.”

Toni Blackhurst, Head of Group Marketing and Commercial at Scottish Rugby, said: “We are delighted to announce the extension of this partnership with a brand with so much heritage and history in Scotland.

“Our match-day experience at BT Murrayfield is something we pride ourselves on and to deepen our relationship with Crabbie’s will enable us to continue to cater for our wide ranging fan demographic.