A converted hen house has become one of the top gin joints in the UK after it won Shed of the Year.

Crossbill Highland Distilling in Inshriach forest in the Cairngorms National Park fought off strong competition from 2,519 other sheds to take the coveted title.

The distillery, which creates gin from 100per cent Scottish juniper, was nominated in and won the pub category of the contest. The top four sheds in each section appeared on Channel 4's Amazing Spaces Shed of the Year before the winner was announced.

This year's winner was decided by the show's public vote after judges were divided over who should take the title.

Jonathan Engels, founder of Crossbill, said: "It's amazing, we did not expect to win at all. We entered it as a bit of fun. We thought we'd win our section but we didn't think we'd win the whole thing.

"The judges couldn't make a decision so they went back to the public vote and we had the most so it's really down to the people that voted for us. It's absolutely brilliant, it's the best way to win."

Walter Micklethwait, who owns the Inshriach estate, added: "We hope the recognition by Shed of the Year inspires others with a similar passion and drive. This award demonstrates that great things can come out of small spaces. All that is needed is a good idea, a lot of creativity and some basic DIY skills."

Engels, previously an architect, and Micklethwait spent two years and £600 converting the chicken shed into a distillery and chose its location because of the abundance of juniper.

The shed, which was created using bits of old railway station and local materials, includes a bar made from upcycled parts of an old chapel, a drinking parlour and a shop.

The distillery began production in 2013 and is working with the Forestry Commission and PlantLife.org to revive juniper production in Scotland.

Engels said: "It's the only gin that's 100per cent Scottish juniper and we can use the juniper fresh because we can get it from the forest to the still in less than five minutes.

"When the Dutch invented Jenever, the precursor to gin, they used to import all of the juniper from the north and north east of Scotland. Now it's usually supplied by Italy or Macedonia so I thought it would be a good idea to try and re-establish the Scottish supply."

The distillery, which is on a private estate, has been inundated with visitor requests following its appearance on Shed of the Year, which is sponsored by Cuprinol.

It will now host a gin shed festival on August 15 to let people visit and celebrate its Shed of the Year win.

Engels said: "We must have had a hundred requests to visit the distillery and I think that's going to increase massively now we've won.

"The festival will let people come and see it. It's going to be a really nice afternoon and we can celebrate the Shed of the Year and gin."