THE team which ensures that a tipple in York is exactly what it should be has been hailed as the best in the country.

The food and safety unit at City of York Council has won a prestigious gold award for its work in tackling "spirit substitution" in pubs and bars.

The accolade follows a number of initiatives in the city to crack down on the practice of refilling branded spirits bottles with a cheaper variety.

One of the biggest took place in August last year, timed to coincide with the Ebor meeting at York Racecourse, when the Evening Press joined council officers who took a total of 94 spirit and takeaway samples from 30 pubs and bars, 30 restaurants and 20 takeaways across the city.

A number of licensees have also been prosecuted for spirit substitution offences.

A council spokeswoman said the unit had taken a total of 250 samples in the past year.

The award was presented at the Trading Standards Institute conference in Brighton by the International Federation of Spirit Producers UK.

The unit's manager, Stuart Benson, said: "This accolade shows that the hard work the team has put in to protect consumers and honest businesses is appreciated. We know that spirit sampling carried out by enforcement officers is reducing substitution nationally, so the effort is worthwhile.

"We're delighted that we have finally won the award, having gained bronze and silver in the last two years."

Councillor Andrew Waller, the city council's executive member for environment and sustainability, said: "I'm delighted for them. They have put a lot of effort in on a number of schemes - and this is just one of them - to crack down on fraud and disreputable dealers in the city, making York a safer place for everyone.

It also makes life better for legitimate traders."

National figures indicate that the practice of spirit substitution has reduced from eight per cent of the outlets inspected to two per cent in the last five years, a fall attributed to sampling activity and enforcement action.

Anyone who suspects that cheap spirits are being passed off as branded varieties in licensed premises should phone the food and safety unit on 01904 551525.

Updated: 10:32 Monday, July 04, 2005