Yorkshire's first whisky distillery reaches the national final of prestigious magazine produce awards

The team at Hunmanby based business, Spirit of Yorkshire are celebrating after its Maturing Malt has reached the national final of thedelicious. magazineawards.

Spirit of Yorkshire's Distillery Projects 002 Maturing Malt won through the regional judging that took place at The Dales Festival of Food and Drink recently and has reached the national final of the Drinks Category that will be held in Borough Market in October.

Distillery Projects 002 (DP002) is a limited edition Maturing Malt and offers a taste of the maturing casks at the North Yorkshire distillery. The second of a series of four collectible spirits, DP002 is described as being ‘light, fresh and fruity, with notes of honeycomb, hot cross buns, barley sugar, gingerbread, orange sponge cake, black pepper, pear drops and white chocolate.'

Spirit of Yorkshire's co-founder and director, David Thompson is delighted that DP002 has reached the national final: "We have broken with whisky making tradition and challenged convention by bringing our Maturing Malt to market, so it's incredibly rewarding that the judges valued it so highly in taste tests, especially given the calibre of the competition that included established spirits brands."

The judging panelincluded cook, Jane Lovett; General Manager of Fodder, Heather Parry; champion of Yorkshire food and drink, Sue Nelson; Bowcliffe Hall chef, Simon Crannage and Gilly Robinson from Malton Cookery School.

The aim of thedelicious.awards, run in association with home appliance company Fisher & Paykel, is to search out and champion local food heroes - small-scale, artisan producers from throughout the UK.

Spirit of Yorkshire was launched in 2016 and is a collaboration between farmer and brewer, Tom Mellor from Wold Top Brewery and business partner, David Thompson. The pair have invested significantly to follow their dream of creating a Yorkshire whisky that doesn't simply replicate Scotch. The distillery is a true field to bottle setup and boasts some of the most impressive distilling equipment in the country, includingtwo of the largest Forsyth pot stills operating in the UK outside of Scotland. It is thought to be the only distillery operating in the UK that grows all of its own barley for its whisky production.

In addition to distilling whisky and conducting guided tours, Spirit of Yorkshire is home to the Pot Still Coffee Shop that serves a variety of home cooked food and hosts regular events including fortnightly Jazz and Blues nights, monthly Distillery Sessions and special events. Forthcoming events include Distillery Sessions with Robert Schmuck on 27^thJuly and a ‘Pot Still Pop Up'whisky-inspired three course mealfrom Birds on the Loose on 11^thOctober.

Ends

Photo:David Thompson David Thompson

For more information or to arrange an interview withDirector and co-founder, David Thompson, please contact Tracey Baty at three60 marketing on

Direct line:01430 871360

Mobile:07971 961574

E mail:traceybaty@three60 marketing.co.uk

Web:www.three60marketing.co.uk

Notes to editors

1. For more information about Spirit of Yorkshire, please visit https://www.spiritofyorkshire.com/
2. For more information about the delicious. Awards, please visithttps://www.deliciousmagazine.co.uk/stories/north-east-regional-produce-awards-judging/
3. The Distillery and Pot Still Coffee Shop are open 7 days a week; 9.30am-5pm, Monday-Saturday and 10am-3pm on a Sunday. Tours run daily all year round at the following times...Monday-Saturday; 10am, 12pm, 2pm and 4pm. Sunday; 12pm and 2pm. Booking is advisable by calling 01723 891758.
4. For more information about the fortnightly Jazz and Blues and the monthly distillery sessions, please visit  https://www.spiritofyorkshire.com/distillery-events-i12
5. In February 2018, Spirit of Yorkshire won VisitEngland Welcome Award in the Attractions Accolades in appreciation of the outstanding experiences they have provided since they opened their visitor attraction in April 2017. They also won the Best Tourism & Hospitality Business at the Bridlington and Yorkshire Coast Chamber Awards in October 2017.
6. The Spirit of Yorkshire's logo depicts a gannet. The team at Spirit of Yorkshire identifies with the fearless, graceful and purposeful birds that have prospered at nearby Bempton Cliffs for many years. In the same way that the gannets have a homing instinct, wherever the team roam to explore new ideas, they will always return to where Yorkshire's first whisky was born.