The Spirit of Yorkshire

Growing: Water

Whisky can’t be made without water, so this month we’re looking at the clear liquid, rather than the amber one. Earlier this month, we came across this article in The Guardian discussing the impact of weather on water in Scotland. Anyone who’s ever spent any time in Scotland will know that drought isn’t the first thing that comes to mind when thinking about Scottish weather. But last year it had a negative impact on some distilleries, when their water sources weren’t able to support their needs.  Along with barley, water... Read More

York - Spirit of Yorkshire's Favourite Yorkshire place 29/06/2019

Living: Favourite Yorkshire places – York

It sounds like a no-brainer, that one of the best places in Yorkshire is the county town, but there’s so much more to York than just its name. Not withstanding the hundreds pubs, there are lots of brilliant coffee shops, independent stores and of course, historical buildings and sites. Though arguably, one of the nicest things to do on a sunny day is to walk along the river, from Rowntree Park, to Homestead, taking in the Minster as you go.

Enjoying: Taking the Train part 2

At the beginning of May, we had a blog post matching Hunmanby train services with the times of our tours; the timetable’s since changed so here’s the update. There are so many reasons why it’s a good idea to take the train to the distillery to come see us – it means everyone can try the drams after the tour with no need for a designated driver; it’s nice to not have to drive and worry about sitting in traffic in and out of Scarborough (we’ve all been stuck on Filey... Read More

Cask 1944, Spirit of Yorkshire Distillery 06/06/2019

Living: 1944 cask for Yorkshire Regiment officers

75 years ago today (6th June 1944) marks what was, many would say, the major turning point of World War Two. Allied forces landed on 5 beaches across the northern coast of France, and the course of the war changed significantly. Two regiments from Yorkshire were crucial to the assault on ‘Gold’ beach – the Green Howards, and the East Yorkshire regiment. In fact, the only Victoria Cross awarded to the D Day campaign went to Company Sergeant Major Stanley Hollis, from 6th Battalion Green Howards. Given that Winston Churchill described... Read More

Growing: Three Years

It’s been 3 years since our stills were first fired in May 2016 and the very first casks of Yorkshire whisky were laid down. Since then our 2016 casks have been patiently waiting in our warehouse, each day edging closer to becoming whisky. In celebration of our first distillations reaching the crucial whisky milestone of 3 years, for this month’s ‘focus on’ we’re looking back, with a touch of nostalgia (forgive us), at the last few years and discussing the maturation requirement: why it’s relevant and why we’re choosing to... Read More

Enjoying: Tour de Yorkshire Pairing Evening

It’s not often you get the world’s best cyclists coming through the village, so to celebrate the Tour de Yorkshire Women’s and Men’s races flying through Hunmanby, we hosted a pairing evening on the Friday evening before. 6 drams were paired with 6 types of produce, all from along the route of the tour and all from producers for whom provenance is of the utmost importance. 45 people packed out the Pot Still Coffee Shop and the team here at Spirit of Yorkshire each took a turn to introduce the... Read More

Living: Favourite Yorkshire Places – NYMR

The North Yorkshire Moors Railway runs from Pickering to Whitby in full steam style, stopping at stations across the moors. It’s been used in countless films, is always exciting to see or travel on, and showcases some of the most beautiful places on the moors. One of our favourite stations is Newtondale Halt – you have to request the stop and there’s nothing there but a platform, but it leads to stunning walks and a real sense of peace. Photo credit: NYMR

Enjoying: Taking the train to Hunmanby

We really appreciate that one of the few challenges with whisky tours is that, usually, someone has to drive. Drivers drams are available but equally, it’s nice to be able to enjoy the tastings with your friends in the moment at the Distillery. To help with this, we’ve been working with the team at Hunmanby station to match up the best trains to go with our tours so that you can travel from Scarborough, Seamer and Filey, (or Bridlington, Driffield and Hull in the other direction), without worrying about driving... Read More

Growing: Grow Yorkshire

Both Tom and David, our two co-founders, have agricultural backgrounds and both are passionate about evolving farming to be relevant to today, rather than just doing things because it’s how they’ve always been done. It’s what led Tom to set up the Wold Top Brewery (our sister brewery) in 2003, and what then gave both Tom and David the idea of the Spirit of Yorkshire Distillery a decade later. Grow Yorkshire is a great new initiative focused on inspiring Yorkshire farmers to grow their businesses beyond the usual – they... Read More

Planting barley at Hunmanby Grange 09/04/2019

Growing: Barley

Over the next few months on our blog we’ll be focusing on key production areas at our distillery. First up: Barley. We’re in a pretty unique position as whisky distilleries go, ‘field-to-bottle’ production in the whisky industry is a real rarity. Field-to-bottle to us means that every drop of spirit that runs from our stills can be traced back to the fields on our farm so naturally, as you might expect, we take barley seriously. This unique perspective allows us to look at barley with three hats on so to... Read More