JULY has seen another two events for the Harvington Phoenix Group. On the first Wednesday of July instead of the regular meeting in the village hall, we congregated at Ellenden Farmshop Kitchen on the edge of the village. It was a beautiful, hot evening for the ‘Summer Party’, in the newly opened café area. With wonderful views back over the fields and lake to the village, the members were welcomed with a glass of summer cup and all contributed to the ‘bring and share’ supper. Whilst the food was being enjoyed, the Harvington Ukulele Group entertained with a well-strummed and varied set of popular pieces, many of which were great to sing along to. Special thanks have to go to David and Sara Turner for opening up their Farmshop Kitchen and to HUGs for a really good evening.

The following week, on another beautiful day, the summer trip took place to the Cotswold Distillery at Stourton. Having had an introduction to the distillery, the members were given a tour of the distillery and finally a tasting in the comfortable tasting room. Quickly establishing itself as one of the finest examples of craft distilling in the UK since opening in 2014, the small distillery has been set up to produce fine spirits in bespoke stills, with names like Janice and Mary. Using many locally grown and sourced ingredients including wheat, barley, lavender and a variety of other botanicals expertly mixed to create unique flavours. Whilst waiting for the whisky to mature, they have produced several other spirits including award winning London dry gin, a spirited sherry and a cream liqueur. The distillery tour was followed by a couple of hours for lunch and browsing in the nearby Shipston on Stour.

The next meeting will be back at the village hall on Wednesday, August 2 at 7.45pm. Please contact Barbara (870719) or Ali (870179) for more information on joining us as a member or visitor.

ALISON RUSHWORTH