World Gin Day 2014 (Saturday 14th June) is fast approaching which can only mean one thing, the quintessentially Yorkshire spirit, Masons Yorkshire Gin, is about to celebrate its first birthday! To celebrate this accomplishment, Rory Gilbert, senior bar tender at Rudding Park Hotel, has created a unique cocktail using Masons Gin, and has christened it the ‘Rudding Park Rose’. It has certainly been a spectacular first year for Masons, with some phenomenal achievements, and of course, plenty of happy customers.
The turn of 2014 saw Masons getting some serious attention from both local and national press, with reviews and editorial featuring in publications ranging from The Yorkshire Post to La Di Da Magazine. But it doesn’t stop there; earlier this April Karl and Cathy Mason garnered some serious attention with interviews from the BBC, on both TV and radio, and in the same month were invited to showcase their gin at the esteemed British Embassy in Paris.
Masons Yorkshire Gin is rapidly growing, and nothing characterises this more than the recent arrival of their new custom-made 300 litre copper alembic still. Christened ‘Steve’ by Karl, the still is already busy creating the fantastic artisan spirit that many have come to love. “Interest in Masons Yorkshire Gin is growing all the time” said Karl, “and we’re hoping that soon we can get a visitor centre set up in our distillery in Bedale”, truly an exciting prospect for any locals keen to see Steve the Still in action.
Further evidence of Masons Yorkshire Gin’s success can simply be found by looking at the prestigious venues now stocking the spirit. From Michelin Starred restaurants like the Pipe and Glass, to exclusive connoisseur venues such as The London Gin Club, the list of spirit vendors rushing to stock this premium Yorkshire product is growing fast, and with Mason’s partnership with prominent distributer Gordon and McPhail in late 2013, it doesn’t look to be slowing down any time soon.
One thing is for certain, this past year has been one big success for Masons Yorkshire Gin, but it’s definitely not over yet, with many exciting events planned for the rest of 2014 and beyond, the quintessential Yorkshire spirit is set to conquer the nation!