*Where it all started!*
Country pursuits enthusiasts have been visiting the Raisthorpe Estate to shoot for well over 20 years now and it’s easy to see why. Nestled amongst rolling hills on the edge of the Yorkshire Wolds with stunning views over the Vale of York, the landscape is nothing short of idyllic.
However, without a doubt it’s not just the beautiful views that have made Raisthorpe Manor so popular, but also their great hospitality.
*How it all began!*
Even before Raisthorpe Manor Fine foods was established back in 2008, owner Julia Medforth was making Raspberry Gin for their shooting parties to enjoy when they came back to the shooting lodge for elevenses.
She says “Visitors to the shoot were always complimenting us on our homemade Raspberry Gin, so it just made sense for us to go into production and branch out the Raisthorpe Manor brand into fine food and drinks.”
From the very beginning they became members of Deliciouslyorkshire and with funding from Yorkshire Forward they were able to build a state of the art gin factory, allowing them to scale up production and really take the art of making their delicious gins and liqueurs seriously.
*Innovation!*
With their production facility established, Julia and her team were able to set to growing their network of stockists and developing their product range which would include the UK’s First Sloe Sherry and Sloe Port, the latter winning Best New Product 2012 at The Deliciouslyorkshire Awards.
Julia says “The Sloe Port is still our top seller to date. It’s one of my favourite products and our customers really love it too.”
Always looking for something new and exciting the Raisthorpe range is ever developing and currently includes gin, whisky, vodkas, port, jams, jellies, chocolates and fruit cakes.
*Keeping it local!*
Much of the sloe berries and fruit used in the Raisthorpe range are foraged from the miles of hedgerow which line the fields surrounding Raisthorpe Manor and wherever possible any ingredients that can’t be found on the estate are sourced locally from producers within Yorkshire.
Julia says “The landscape is very chalky here at Raisthorpe, which means growing plums or damsons is almost impossible but luckily we have a great network of suppliers in Yorkshire who can provide us with top quality fruit to use in our products.”
Julia also works with local artisan producers who make some of the products in Raisthorpe range which can’t be produced at Raisthorpe Manor, for example once the sloe port has spent 9 months developing in the factory, the booze drenched sloes are sent to Bracken Hill Preserves at Wheldrake and turned into Raisthorpe Manor’s award winning Sloe Port Jelly. They also work with The Patisserie at nearby Malton who create their decadent Sloe Gin and Sloe Port Fruit Cakes.
Julia says “I come up with the ideas and then we find a local producer to help us develop the product and put it in to production.
*Proudest Moment!*
This year Raisthorpe achieved what many food and drink producers can only dream of when their Damson Port was awarded 3 gold Stars in the Great Taste Awards.
Julia says “This is the ultimate accolade, only 153 products out of 10,000 entries were awarded 3 gold stars and it speaks volumes about just how delicious our Damson Port is!”
*Out and about!*
You can find the Raisthorpe range in stockists all over Yorkshire and beyond and online through websites such as notonthehighstreet.com or Raisthorpe Manor’s own website.
Also you can find Julia and her team out and about at various different shows, festivals and events throughout the year including national game fairs, The Great Yorkshire Show, local agricultural shows like Driffield and popular food festivals such as Malton.