Founded by gin lovers Karl and Catherine Mason who knew enough about gin to make a spirit to appeal to their own very specialised taste, Mason’s Yorkshire Gin is indeed made in Yorkshire in the small market town of Bedale. In fact it seems the Masons have singlehandedly revived the tradition of distilling in Yorkshire. All of their Yorkshire gins are quadruple distilled and 100% vapour infused and they all sound equally delicious. We particularly like the sound of ‘Purple Ram’ which is described as having “A sweet nose of spicy orange, a smooth citrus palate and a balanced juniper finish.” After much trial and error the botanical formula was arrived at and the gin was launched in 2013. The recipe includes juniper, coriander, almond oil, fennel, cardamom, bay leaf, Schezuan pepper and lemon, orange and lime zests. So, in many ways a very traditional recipe and Masons is clearly strongly juniper (which we like!) From their microdistillery in the market town of Bedale in North Yorkshire, Karl and Catherine Mason craft some of the most distinctive artisan gins around and have placed Yorkshire firmly on the craft gin map. Using mineral water from the ancient springs beneath their land, they now produce two versions of gin in addition to their range of tasty liqueurs. Raisthorpe Oak-Aged Gin is their traditionally distilled gin that is rested in oak barrels to give it smooth and mellow flavour. Rare Bird London Dry Gin

Whittaker’s Gin is produced by the family-run, Harrogate Distillery, on Harewell House Farm in Nidderdale. The artisian, small-batch gin uses naturally-sourced water from their own land, along with local Hawthorne Berries and Bog Myrtle. The Little Red Berry Company are a multi-award winning company based near Ripon. They have been producing alcoholic liqueurs and flavoured gins since 2011 when they took their first Yorkshire gins to Otley Show for locals to sample. It’s great to see something new and different of quality brought to the gin party and one can see how well this gin will work in the brand’s suggested serve of a G and T garnished with orange peel and cardamom pods. I could also see it shine in a gin punch either the summer version with lots of fruit or in a warm punch with cinnamon and lemon. Suggestions on a postcard please!! Whitby Yorkshire Gin is distilled with botanicals from both the land and sea, from the Yorkshire Moors to Scarborough beach. By combining dry botanicals such as Heather flower with the seas forgotten sugar kelp and pepper dulse, each bottle is distilled with Harrogate aquifer water for a crystal finish. Their expert flavours consist of Bramble and Bay, Wild Old Tom and a special Barghest Limited edition. York Gin It’s no secret that the UK has a renewed obsession with gin. In fact, there are more than 15 successful Yorkshire Gin distilleries producing delightful and unique blends now.In 2018, alternative flavours have been at the forefront of the gin trend. Including the rise of pink gin, violet gin and even marshmallow gin. In 2015 the original Mason’s Yorkshire Gin was boosted with the arrival of two sister expressions – Yorkshire Gin Lavender Edition and Yorkshire Gin Tea Edition. All three gins are bottled at 42% ABV and promote their use of Harrogate water to reduce bottling strength. I’m never entirely sure that a specific water source makes much of a difference to the final taste of gin as all the water used in gin production tends to be filtered, demineralised water hence exceptionally pure. But given that a terrifyingly large proportion of the gin in your bottle is water it certainly can’t do any harm! Yorkshire Dales Gin Distillery is a family-run distillery near Richmond, producing some great handcrafted gins. All their spirits are distilled using ancient mineral water from Swaledale and local botanicals. Made in South Africa, this Cruxland Gin is infused with Kalahari truffle to give it its distinctive taste, alongside more standard botanicals like honeybush and almond. Yorkshire has been producing the juniper-flavoured spirit since the 1500s, and today it is home to as many as 45 distilleries creating award-winning gins inspired by the beautiful and historic county that is Yorkshire.

We’ve put together a selection of highly acclaimed gin brands all hailing from Yorkshire, ranging from fruity to savoury, with each one bringing their own uniqueness to the table. The Spirit of Masham distillery is owned by Cork and Cases and located on a small business park just outside Masham. It is open to the public so visitors can learn about the gin-making process and see the copper alembic still, which is used to create their “Spirit of Masham Gin”. Sloe gin is a much loved variant that will be familiar to any connoisseurs of the drink. It also serves as the inspiration behind Boodles Mulberry Gin, which swaps out the sloes for mulberries, resulting in an exotic twist on the classic tipple. The favourite from this particular brand is their Lavender Edition, which promises dry lavender notes on the nose and candied lavender on the palette.

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We were particularly intrigued to try the Yorkshire Tea Edition as using tea as a botanical in gin has become a bit of a thing. Pioneered by Beefeater in the very splendid Beefeater 24 with its Chinese green tea and Japanese Sencha tea ingredients it’s a trend that doesn’t always fly. In fact I think one could safely draw a veil over the Heston Blumenthal Earl Grey and Lemon experiment, in my view a rare miss for this master of flavour. Mason’s Gin is distilled in the small market town of Bedale and the original Masons Yorkshire Gin has been around since 2013, when their final recipe was agreed upon. Botanicals include almond oil, fennel, cardamon, bay leaf, lemon, orange, lime zest and a great deal of juniper! York Gin Cocoa is distilled using cocoa beans from York Cocoa Works to give it a unique and intensely satisfying flavour along with the unmistakable aroma of chocolate. A wonderfully fitting tribute to York’s history of chocolate production. Born, bred and based in Harrogate, Whittaker’s Yorkshire Gin has been recognised away from its home in Nidderdale and crossed the sea to America. The family-run distillery has an eclectic list of awards that complement their extensive range that suits every season. Their international winner, Whittaker’s Original Gin relishes a sharp, punchy taste from the Yorkshire Moor’s bounteous Bog Merytle. Their tart Summer Solstice Gin is a blend of pink grapefruit and pomegranate, ideal for warm evenings. Rare Bird Distillery There is no surprise why Yorkshire is titled as ‘God’s Own County’. Its idyllic scenery and cobbled streets are not only bestowed for its cosy community atmosphere, but the spirit of the region lies in its Yorkshire Gin. With an abundance of distilleries priding themselves on using the old copper stills and locally foraged ingredients, an eclectic and extensive range of award-winning gin brands and flavours have been birthed right here in Yorkshire.

The York Gin Company was founded by four friends who share a love of gin and a passion for their historic city. York Gin was the very first to be distilled in the city of York and despite being on sale for just 6 months, it is one of the most popular Yorkshire gins on the Summer Tasting Menu at London Gin Club, Soho.While the distillery was being planned and constructed, they worked with a distiller in Cambridgeshire to perfect the recipe for their gin. Karl and Catherine had already decided they wanted to create a gin with a distinctive personality. After dozens of different trial runs and tasting sessions with friends, family and a steady stream of Yorkshire-men and women happy to sample experimental gin blends, they found exactly the right balance of flavours. This gin uses Hebridean sugar kelp as one of its botanicals, bottling a taste of the Scottish Isle of Harris where it is made. Addingham Fruit Liqueurs is a small family run business, set up by Fiona Mann in Addingham, near Ilkley. Fiona was introduced to Sloe Gin by her late father-in-law and soon realised that you can “add any fruit to any spirit base”. After much encouragement and support from family and friends, she began experimenting with locally foraged fruits.