Who are you, and what’s your role? Laurence Conisbee. I am the founder of Wharf Distillery. I run the distillery and am still actively involved in day to day production and product development whilst building the distillery team. How long have you had the distillery open? We started distilling […]

Who are you, and what’s your role? Paul and Leanne Colman (Owners) How long have you had the distillery open? Three years now What inspired you / the company to start distilling? Born out of a desire to escape from the daily grind of the rat race and a mutual […]

Who are you, and what’s your role? Phil Whitwell – Director & Founder How long have you had the distillery open? 2014, 8 years What inspired you / the company to start distilling? Batch Brew Limited originally began producing bottled craft beers in Winchester, selling to local bars and restaurants […]

  Who are you, and what’s your role? I’m Peter Dignan (owner) and like any small business my role is anything that needs doing and anything I need to do. How long have you had the distillery open? The distillery opened in 2017. What inspired you / the company to […]

  Who are you, and what’s your role? Paul & Cheryl Sharrocks, Owners and Founders How long have you had the distillery open? We set the company up in Nov 2018 and launched our first gin in March 2019 so just over 3 years. What inspired you / the company […]

Who are you, and what’s your role? Ian Hart, Founder and Distiller How long have you had the distillery open? 2008 (14 years) What inspired you / the company to start distilling? Naturally curious and fascinated with science and distillation from an early age, Ian Hart would eventually gain a […]

What’s your name and role? Karl Bond. Co-founder What inspired you / the company to start distilling? A love of spirits, combined with a shared interest in distillation with my wife Lindsay. How long have you had the distillery open? Forest Distillery opened in  2015, but our story began in 2013 […]

Spirits traders have urged Chancellor Rishi Sunak – who is MP for Richmond where Leeming-based Masons Gin resides – to lower the excise duty burden imposed on alcohol manufacturers. It comes as figures released by the UK Spirits Alliance revealed the scale of Yorkshire’s role in the recent boom in […]

Cutting the duty paid on whisky and gin would lead to an overall increase in revenues and help boost the economy, according to a think tank co-founded by Margaret Thatcher. A report by the Centre for Policy Studies identifies the alcohol duty on spirits as a key levy that the Government can […]

Spirits in this country remain among the highest taxed in the world with almost £3 in every £4 going to the Treasury. There has been a boom since 2014 when freezes and cuts in tax have seen revenues rise by nearly a quarter to £735 million. Tory MP John Lamont […]

Responding to the Conservative’s commitment to reform excise duty, a spokesperson for the UK Spirits Alliance said: “We welcome the Prime Minister’s commitment to reforming an excise duty system that is unfit for purpose and which is holding back the continued development of a national business success story.  “The UK […]