The Ultimate Gin Experiences in Yorkshire
If you’re a gin lover in Yorkshire then you’re very lucky because our glorious county has an incredible amount of craft gin distilleries and independent gin makers. So many in fact that Cooper King made an illustrated Yorkshire Gin Map to promote them. You can buy a copy of the 2nd Edition Yorkshire Gin Map from the Cooper King online shop.
What can you expect on a Yorkshire Gin Experience?
While many Yorkshire distilleries follow a similar format for their gin experiences you can be assured that you’ll never hear the same founder stories or quirky anecdotes. Each distillery has their own unique story which is hugely important to the experience. There’s one thing you can be sure you’ll get at all of our experiences and that’s a hearty Yorkshire welcome!
Inspirational Founder Stories
All of the craft distilleries that we work with include the telling of their stories as part of the gin experience. You get to hear from the people behind the businesses, often ordinary people doing ordinary jobs who had a big dream and then worked hard to realise their dream. Their stories are fascinating and inspirational. They lend the experiences the personal quality that you just wouldn’t find on a gin experience with a huge distillery.
A Taste of Yorkshire: Locally Sourced Ingredients
Craft distilleries appreciate the value of working with local ingredients to establish their signature botanicals and weaving these ingredients into the stories around their own blends. The unique location of Whitby distillery meant they were perfectly placed to incorporate heather foraged from the North York Moors, sugar kelp from the sea shore and local honey. Each ingredient has been selected to champion elements of the North Yorkshire coastline.
The Chance to Craft Your Own Signature Gin Blend
Some distilleries offer the opportunity to create your own gin blend using their signature spirit as a jumping off point. You’re often given the opportunity to learn about the distillation process and a little of the history and characteristics of that particular distillery. Guided by a professional distiller, you’ll smell and taste the botanicals used and select the ones that appeal to you for your own blend. Our experience providers Locksley Distilling Co in Sheffield, Liquor Studio in Leeds and Hothams Distillery in Hull all offer this unique gin making experience.
The Distillation Process: From Still to Bottle
Every distillery has their own unique story from the origin of their still to the production of their bottles. Cooper King have an extraordinary story which begin way back on a gap year adventure in Tasmania. It’s an incredible story and well worth hearing from Abbie and Chris, the owners. Their distillation process is also interesting, where most distilleries use a heat source to separate the alcohol from the water in the distillation process, Cooper King use a cold distillation process which uses just 10% of the energy normally required and much less water. Sustainability is at the heart of what they do and the gin that they produce is England’s first carbon-negative gin, meaning that every bottle of their herb and dry gin removes 1kg more of CO₂e from the atmosphere than they emit.
Gin Tasting and Pairing Sessions
The amount of gin you’ll taste varies from distillery to distillery depending on the range that they produce but it is safe to say that you will get to try them all. The craftsmanship and passion that goes into each new blend is reflected in the stories that the teams will tell you about each gin. These are artisan producers who are passionate about what they do and this really comes across in their gin tasting experiences. At Whittaker’s Distillery near Harrogate you’ll sit down after touring their gin and whisky distillery and enjoy a taste of their 9 spirits accompanied by some local Yorkshire nibbles.
Take Home a Bottle of Yorkshire’s Finest Gin
All of our distilleries want you to love what they do and some experiences offer you the chance to take home a bottle of their gin at a reduced rate. You’ll sample all the gins on the experience and then select your favourite to take home and enjoy at your leisure. York gin offer a fantastic gin tasting experience with stories and anecdotes to woven into their tastings and delivered by a particularly passionate team. Their experience offers the opportunity to upgrade and include a large bottle of your favourite gin for an very decent saving of £10 on their RRP.
If this article has whetted your appetite for a Yorkshire gin experience you can find our whole range of Yorkshire gin tasting and gin creation experiences here.