ANOTHER month, another new business opening in Malton and this time it’s something that I think will get everyone a little giddy and excited.

Ladies and gentleman, get your glasses and cocktail shakers at the ready, it’s time to introduce Malton’s brand new and seriously sexy Rare Bird Distillery.

Based in the heart of Talbot Yard, Matt and Elizabeth Stewart’s unique distillery is just that - unique.

Vintage wooden floors, sparkling chandeliers, a gin school upstairs and in pride of place behind a huge glass window is “Florence” - their beautiful, bespoke copper still. And what a beauty she is. A superb feat of engineering constructed specially for Rare Bird.

One side of the curvaceous pot reminds me of a giant Victorian copper kettle. The other side with its tall and elegant rectifier tube makes me think of an oboe or clarinet.

“It’s funny you say that,” Elizabeth remarks, “when Florence is working her magic, she does sound like a whole orchestra.”

But where did it all begin for this enterprising couple embarking on their very own distillery journey? They explain…

Matt and Elizabeth, passionate foodies, enjoyed the food culture of Italy and France and thought there was no reason that same Mediterranean passion for food and drink couldn’t be brought home to Yorkshire too.

Gin was their thing and after two pain-staking years of practising on a mini-trial still at home, Matt finally came across the perfect recipe for a London dry gin.

He describes it as a “one in a million moment” and explains, “That’s where the name Rare Bird came from. After many attempts, suddenly we got it. I’ve always wanted to create a gin that was unique and at that moment the stars aligned and the balance of ingredients just clicked.”

Although the exact recipe is a closely guarded secret, Matt tells me it contains juniper, coriander seed, lemon, orange, cassia bark (similar to cinnamon), cardamom, green peppercorns, rosemary and hibiscus flower. “Mediterranean inspired, Yorkshire at heart,” he says and after tasting it myself it surely is a Rare Bird.

Matt recommends it over ice with a good tonic, although he personally prefers a slice of pink grapefruit and a sprig of rosemary.

Elizabeth’s choice is with a slice of blood orange. I tried it both ways, and I have to admit this writer was not disappointed.

And I must mention upstairs. On the first floor of the distillery is their new gin school, where visitors can learn about the gin process and even make their own bespoke gin in a miniature still.

No doubt this will be hugely popular and they plan to take group bookings for family celebrations, hen parties and the like.

Sitting at the pretty wooden bar with my very own gin distilling in front of me over a heat plate, it’s not hard to imagine people going ga-ga for the gin school!

As I leave I suspect that this new venture will cause quite a splash.

There’s so many great parts to it; Florence the still, the school upstairs, the superb gin itself and its sexy blue bottle. Folks, truly a Rare Bird has hatched!

Why not combine a visit to Talbot Yard with the monthly food market on Saturday, August 12, and don’t forget the CIC’s popular Street Food Sunday event is back in Market Place East this coming weekend.

For details, visit maltonyorkshire.co.uk