Words by Colin Hampden-White
For centuries whisky has been dominated by Scotch, however as whisky drinkers seek out new drams and new flavours, whisky is being made all over the world more than ever before. I recently learnt that over the last few years in Québec alone over sixty new distilleries have sprung up, and many of them are making whisky. Much closer to home, on the doorstep of Scotch, there are also some fabulous whiskies being created. In Norfolk in 2006, James Nelstrop and his son Andrew founded the first distillery in 100 years and it has been producing bottles since 2009. Since 2006 many others have built distilleries in England and Wales too. There are so many in fact that I now have the pleasure of having to choose which are my favourites!
Cotswolds
Founded by Daniel Szor in 2014 this distillery has several of my favourite English Whiskies. Using the skills of Dr Jim Swan they had whisky ready for drinking in just three years, and now have several impressive expressions, including some brilliant single casks. As these are so difficult to find, I am listing my three favourites which are easier to find below:
Cotswolds Sherry Cask Single Malt Whisky
This is a heavily sherried whisky created using locally grown barley and matured in a mixture of casks. They used a mix of American and Spanish oak hogsheads and butts which were seasoned with both Pedro Ximénez and Oloroso sherry. This combination gives a very rich whisky which is toasty with lots of fruitcake flavours but also cooked orchard fruits, orange peel, nuts and lots of dried berries and raisins. Big, rich and utterly delicious.
Size: 700ml
ABV: 57.4%
Find here: £63.95
Cotswolds Reserve Single Malt Whisky
This expression is also made from 100% local barley and has been floor malted. The spirit has then been matured in first-fill ex-bourbon barrels and STR red wine casks. STR stands for Shaving, Toasting and Re-charring which gives a particular richness to the whisky at an earlier age. There is no colouring or chill filtering and is bottled at 50%, which for me is my sweet spot for most whisky. This whisky has lots of sweet honey and vanilla, lemon and a touch of spicy heat on the back of the palate. Easy drinking whisky with oodles of flavour.
Size: 700ml
ABV: 50%
Find here: £54.95
Cotswolds Bourbon Cask Single Malt Whisky
This does exactly what you’d expect. It gives lots of vanilla and honey with orchard fruits. There’s a touch of toasty oak and a creamy mouthfeel. What I like about this expression the most though is that by using just ex bourbon casks the spirit shines through the wood, so as well as all the sweet flavours, the orchard fruits really sing. A lighter style of whisky, this is perfect for summer. Careful of the abv though, it’s pretty high and I love this whisky reduced in a classic highball.
Size: 700ml
ABV: 59.1%
Find here: £64.95
The English Whisky Company
St George’s distillery is the one which started it all in England after a hiatus of whisky making for more than 100 years. Being first out of the blocks wasn’t easy and the first few expressions, although good, still had to compete with Scotch, and that took a while to do. Now, however, the whiskies are brilliant! I have quite a few I like, but my two favourites lately have been these:
The English Gently Smoked Sherry Hogshead
“The English” was launched in 2016 with two expressions, but now they have several more. This as it says is gently smoked. The smoke is sweet and well balanced with the sherry flavours. There is lots of rich oak and dried fruits with soft smoke and anise. Sweetness comes from toffee flavours and there are nuts and vanilla that come through at the end. There were only 1800 bottles produced, so grab one whilst you can!
Size: 700ml
ABV: 46%
Find here: £63.94
The English Wine Cask Matured
This is a very fruity whisky. There is some spice, but it is all about the fruit really. Second fill Cabernet Sauvignon casks were used to great effect giving lots of red fruits and toasty oak. With rich flavour and with lots of complexity in the fruit profile, this is an excellent after-dinner dram. Added to the fruit there are notes of ginger and there is also a chocolatey note in the background. One for cold nights when winter is drawing in.
Size: 700ml
ABV: 46%
Find here: £55.95
White Peak
One of the newest distilleries in England, White Peak is in Derbyshire and had some direction from Dr Jim Swan. Whiskies which have been made with his help tend to be ready to drink earlier than many others, and this is no exception with the White Peak whiskies. They have only had two releases so far, and the first one was a blinder, but impossible to find anymore. This lightly peated expression however can be found at our good friends Master of Malt, but do hurry, you can only buy one each and it’ll run out soon!
Wire Works Whisky Small Batch
This whisky has been matured in a mix of American and French oak and most of those casks in Dr Jim Swan style have been shaved toasted and re-charred. They previously held bourbon. With warming buttery flavours including some ginger, vanilla and a little tropical fruit there are wafts of sweet smoke running in the background. This is fulfilling, very moreish and is one of my English drams of the year so far.
Size: 700ml
ABV: 46.2%
Find here: £59.94
Aber Falls
Aber Falls distillery is in one of the most beautiful parts of Wales situated in Abergwyngregyn in the shadow of mount Snowdon. It might be a bit of a trek to get to but if you can make the journey, it’s well worth it. The distillery started production in 2017, and because of a little thing called COVID 19, only released its first whisky, the inaugural release in late 2021. But it was well worth waiting for. There were only 200 bottles of the first release, and it was delicious. Luckily, they had another release shortly afterwards:
Aber Falls Autumn release 2021
This has to be the best value for money whisky in England. It was matured in a mixture of Oloroso, Pedro Ximénez, bourbon and virgin oak casks giving loads of rich fruit and touches of spice in the background. They work with local farmers so they can use local welsh barley and have a keen eye on sustainability overall. This is a very easy-to-drink, tasty whisky.
Size: 700ml
ABV: 40%
Find here: £26
Aber Falls Single Malt Whisky Distillers Cut 2021
This is a slightly unusual whisky. The casks used in the maturation previously held wine which had been made from oranges. Understandably therefore there are lots of citrus flavours which range from fleshy sweet citrus to dried and pithy and also a little zesty peel. The flavours are carried well with an abv a little higher than normal. Something a little different, but no less tasty for it.
Size: 700ml
ABV: 46.1%
Find here: £49.95
Copper Rivet
This distillery is situated in an old pumphouse at Chatham Maritime in Medway. It took three years to renovate the pumphouse and the distillery began distilling in 2016. It is the only spirit producer in Kent, owned and run by Rob Russell and his two sons. They make a few different spirits, including whisky for which they only use grain grown in the county and they use a few different types of grain too, not only barley. Here are two of my favourites:
Masthouse Column Malt Whisky
It is very rare to have a malt whisky created on a column still and it gives a great deal of smoothness to the whisky. The flavours are precise with lots of sweetness and have a great balance with the wood integration from maturation not overpowering the spirit at all, allowing the fruity estery flavours to shine through. The grain comes from a single Kentish field less than 15 miles from the distillery keeping the Kent provenance.
Size: 500ml
ABV: 45%
Find here: £45
Masthouse Grain
This whisky was produced to champion the use of grain in whisky making. They use three different grains; wheat, barley and rye which come together to give lots of sweet complex flavours with a little spicy, peppery kick from the rye. The whisky is not only distilled in a column still like most grain whiskies but also in a pot still giving plenty of fruity flavours too. Something a little different, but something very tasty too.
Size: 500ml
ABV: 42%
Find here: £42
Enjoyed this but want to read some Scotch whisky recommendations? Then, make sure you head over to From Budget to Blowout: The Best Scotch of 2022.