We are getting towards needing to apply our lovely labels to the bottles and it's important to place them in exactly the same place on each bottle, always ensuring they are straight. The options were to purchase a hugely expensive industrial machine, which seemed to go against the artisan ethos of Four Acres Estate, or to go for a hand-crafted traditional solution in the form of a clever positioning jig.

The inspiration for the pictured, highly sophisticated piece of engineering came from Debbie at Shetland Reel Gin ( www.shetlandreel.com ); the best gin company north of the border.

This wonderful contraption was actually made for us by Chip Chipperfield (www.chipperfieldwoodturners.co.uk). His tiny family business operates from a shed in Spellbrook, Hertfordshire and it appears there is nothing Chip cannot make out of wood; the man is a master craftsman!