A WOODEN gin distillery created from a dilapidated hen house and complete with a piano bar has been voted Britain’s best shed.

    Walter Micklethwait, 36, used recycled parts from an old dismantled railway station to build the winning shack in his farmyard over two years with the help of girlfriend Lizzy Westman.

    Walter’s Shed in Aviemore in the Scottish Highlands is now a fully functioning distillery, which produces the Crossbill Gin brand.

    It also boasts a Wild West-themed saloon bar, a velour-upholstered piano bar and a farm shop that sells hand-carved items, vintage clothing, eggs and other produce.

    The shack is home to regular parties and Micklethwait said he would be toasting his success in the 2015 Cuprinol Shed of the Year contest with gin rather than the champagne he got to spray.

    Micklethwait’s pride and joy saw off 2,520 rivals with runners-up including a floating beach hut, alpine hut, corrugated cottage and an eco shed.

    After a public vote to pick eight finalists, the winner of the annual contest was chosen by expert judges including Shed of the Year founder Andrew Wilcox and last year’s winner Joel Bird.

    Micklethwait scooped a £1,000 (US$1,552) cash prize along with a giant crown and winner’s plaque for his shed. His entry won the contest’s “pub” category before being declared the overall best shed ahead of seven other category winners.

    “We were up against some proper craftsmen, brilliant eccentrics and most of all a really nice bunch of people so it is an absolute honor to have won Shed of the Year 2015 — a huge thanks to everyone who voted for us,” Micklethwait said.

    “I just saw entering the competition as a laugh and a way of spreading the word about Crossbill Gin.

    “Perhaps the nature of our business — hospitality and gin — gave us an advantage with the public vote.”

    The gin distillery began life as a run-down hen house with a rusted sheet-metal roof and wormwood-rotted joints.

    (SD-Agencies)