Adnams plans to give more of its customers the chance to make their own gin in-store as it embarks on a retail expansion programme.

The service is already available at its branch in Bury St Edmunds, Suffolk, which is fitted with seven mini stills. Customers pay £95 to distil their own spirit and add a choice of botanicals in a process that takes two and a half hours and results in a bespoke bottle of gin.

Retail chief Neil Griffin says people are given gin and tonics to enjoy while they wait. He adds: “We’re quite keen on this customisation and personalisation trend that’s coming through.

“We give people a selection of botanicals and talk them through what each one of them potentially does. They put four or five of them into the pot still and distil it down, and you get the liquid at the end. We label it up with the name of your choice.

“It’s going really well. Customers are enjoying the experience and it’s climbing the Trip Advisor rankings in East Anglia.”

The concept is likely to be rolled out to future Adnams Cellar & Kitchen branches that are currently being scouted, though not in the pop-up that has just opened in the centre of Cambridge and will trade until the New Year.

Adnams spokesman Josh Wicks says Cambridge is a city that the company is “obviously keen to get into”. He adds: “The pop-up gives us flexibility and a bit of a foothold, and then we’ll look for something more permanent.

“It’s a busy and competitive place, but you don’t want to shy away from those places – you want to be in there.”