English whisky

English whisky (English whiskey) is a liquor made from malt, grains and water that is produced in England. This includes malt and grain whisky which can be additionally split into single or blended.

England is not traditionally known for producing whisky and is considered part of new world whisky category. The English Whisky Guild is the trade body for English whisky.

As of May 10 2024 there are 24 English whisky brands including Ad Gerfrin, Adnams, Cotswolds, Lakes, Oxford Rye, Sacred Spirits and English Whisky Co.

History

Origins and discontinuation

Origins

In 1636 the Worshipful Company of Distillers was granted a charter to produce spirits, including whisky.

In 1825, the Chancellor of the Exchequer reduced the duty on alcohol and permitted distillers to sell directly to the public. The government believed this would encourage distillers to produce higher quality spirits, eliminating the dangerous rectification process. These changes were expected to bolster distillers' prosperity and to generate revenue for the Treasury. The reduction in alcohol duty led to a near doubling of English spirit consumption and solidified England's reputation for distilling excellence. Coupled with the introduction of cask-aged English whisky, this boosted demand for English spirits, which accounted for around 16% of England's revenue by 1885.

In the 1887 book '' The Whisky Distilleries of the United Kingdom'' by Alfred Barnard, the following English distilleries were listed:
* Lea Valley Distillery, Stratford, Essex (founded in the late 19th century) — produced both grain and malt whisky.
* Bank Hall Distillery, Liverpool — produced grain and malt whisky.
* Bristol Distillery, Bristol (founded in the 17th century) — produced grain whisky which was "sent to Scotland and Ireland to make a Blended Scotch and Irish whisky, for whisky purpose it is specially adapted, and stands in high favour".
* Vauxhall Distillery in Vauxhall, Liverpool (founded in 1781) — produced grain whisky.

Discontinuation

In 1903 Lea Valley Distillery, owned by The Distillers Company closed and they moved production to Scotland due to the expanding popularity and production of gin and Scotch whisky.

Re-establishment

In 2005, The English Whisky Co. Ltd. received permission to construct the first registered whisky distillery in England in over a century. Its initial release of single malt whisky arrived in 2009, marking the first bottling and release of English whisky in over 100 years. In 2013, The London Distillery Company began production of the first single malt whisky in London since Lea Valley Distillery closed in 1903. Three other English distilleries, also producing whisky by 2014, were The Cotswolds Distillery, Ludlow Distillery, and The Lakes Distillery.

As of 2025 the English whisky category is around 20 years old having being established in 2006.

Definition

A process is under way to create a statutory definition for English whisky. Currently, English whisky producers adhere to EU Regulation (2019/787) which sets the criteria for whisky and includes:

* Maturation: matured in wooden casks for three years
* Sweeteners/Additives: no sweeteners or have additives allowed except E150a,
* ABV minimum ABV of 40%
* Distillation: distilled at a ABV of less than 94.8% ABV.

English whisky also follows the guidelines of the British Standards Institute.

English whisky has innovated its production with different types of yeast fermentation, with many distilleries using their brewing expertise in order to craft distinctive flavours. Notable examples include Grasmere Distillery, which uses ale yeasts and cold fermentation for fruity new make spirits; Lancaster Spirits Co., employing 200-year-old yeast and slow fermentation for aromatic, complex whisky, often bottled as new make; and Cotswolds Distillery, which uses dual yeast strains to produce vibrant, fruity spirits before maturation. The aim of this innovation is to create flavour from the onset and make yeast-driven whiskies that challenge traditional methods.

Guidance

On 12 September 2023, the British Standards Institute published its first guideline BS 8636 for the production and packaging of English, Scotch, Welsh, and Irish whisky. These guidelines outline the following requirements:
* Color: Caramel
* Maturation: Minimum of three years in wooden casks
* Sweeteners/Additives: None permitted
* Alcohol by Volume (ABV): Minimum of 40%
* Distillation: Less than 94.8% volume

Legal

An English whisky GI is currently in progress to define the production and labelling of English whisky with a decision due on 19 May 2025.

English Whisky GI

The English whisky GI is a proposed legal framework that includes two types of whisky malt whisky and grain whisky and two sub-divisions single and blended. The GI also specifies that English whisky must:

* be made from U.K cereal grains
* be made using English water
* be distilled in England
* must have an ABV of less than 94.8%
* be matured in wooden casks of no more than 700 litres
* be matured for at least 3 years
* have a minimum ABV of 40%
The English whisky GI specifies that an English single malt must be:

* distilled at a single distillery in England
* made from malted barley using batch distillation
* distilled in copper pot stills.

Attributes

Characteristics

Flavours

English whisky has four flavours:

* sweet (vanilla, oats, raisins, peach, apricot)
* savoury (rye bread, herbs)
* spicy (cooking spices, pepper, gingerbread, citrus peel)
* smoky (oak, peat, leather)

Colour

English whisky has a variety of different colours including caramel and yellow.

Distilleries

Distilleries

There are 61 distilleries in England as of 2024, 26 of these distilleries are part of the English Whisky Guild.

The English whisky distilleries are all at various stages of development with the oldest, St George's Distillery, brewing whisky for nearly 20 years. The Cotswolds distillery is the largest producer of whisky in England.

Region

The English whisky distilleries are spread across nine regions, as follows:

South East

The whisky distilleries in the South East of England include: The Oxford Artisan Distillery, Black Bottle Distillery, Isle of

Wight distillery, Copper Rivet Distillers, Anno Distillers and Canterbury Brewers & Distillers.

End Stages

Independent bottlers

There are 18 independent whisky bottlers in England, including Cadenhead, That Boutique-y, North Star, Watt Whisky, Berry Bros & Rudd, The Heart Cut, The Whisky Show and Thompson Bros.

Distributors

Trade

Economic valuation

From March to April 2023 the English Whisky Guild conducted a survey of English distilleries. The survey found that there were then 38,000 casks of English whisky maturing in distillery warehouses, and an estimated 50,000 casks expected to be laid down by distilleries by the end of 2024 with 97% of distilleries making single malt and a quarter of distilleries making whiskies using other grain such like rye. The total value of the maturing stock was estimated to exceed £1 billion during that period.

On 4 June 2024, the English Whisky Guild published its first annual report. The report found that sales of English whisky last year equated to 50,000 (9L) casks, with 40% of English whisky being sold internationally as well as 250,000 people visiting English whisky distillery last year. The total value of English whisky sold domestically and internationally was £1 billion.

In July 2024 English whisky for 26% of new products listed in a twelve-month period and over 50% of the total volume of English of spirits products listed since June 2023.

English whisky distilleries have created 443 jobs across England, and the product is sold internationally in 32 countries around the world, including: Japan, France, Belgium, Netherlands, Germany, Canada, Singapore and the United States.

International trade

United States

''Market access''

On 25 June 2011, US authorities informed The English Whisky Co that it would not be able to sell English single malt whisky in the US market as it is produced using recycled oak barrels and US law requires that new oak barrels be used. The English Whisky Co accused the US of double standards, as whisky from other nations including Scotland, Ireland, Wales and France uses recycled barrels to produce whisky.

On 3 January 2013, after a five-year dispute, and lobbying the Foreign Office, UK trade bodies and the US embassy, The English Whisky Co was granted permission to sell English whisky in the US market.

''Tariffs''

On 2 April 2025 the United States placed tariffs of 10% on English whisky

On the 4 April 2025 Morag Garden CEO of the English Whisky Guild made a statement pointing to the importance of the US market for English whisky sales, and confirming that the EWG will work with the UK Government and members of the industry to ensure fair and open trade and support the growth for English whisky.

India

On 6 May 2026 India and the U.K signed a trade agreement that brought the tariffs for English whisky from 150% to 75% and is due to drop to 40% by the tenth year of the agreement.

Activities

Achievements

Auctions

On 8 September 2022, the White Peaks Distillery auctioned its Wire Works Single Malt Whisky which sold for a total of £9,900 ($11,337).

Net zero whisky distillation

On 6 November 2023 the Cooper King Distillery released a whisky distilled using only Net zero emissions energy.

Fully English blended whisky

On 28 March 2025 Woven whisky release the world's first fully English blended whisky Experience No 22 Pastures New. It consists of whiskies from 6 distilleries including Cotswolds, White Peak, Cooper King, Copper Rivet, Fielden and Adnams and is valued at £55 or $71 USD.

Partnership agreements

On 1 December 2021 Gullivers & Co signed a partnership agreements with England Rugby to produce rugby themed whisky which would become the official whisky of the English Rugby Union.

As of 2023 the partnership agreement between Gullivers and England Ruby is still active with England's No. 6 Single Malt Whisky becoming the latest English rugby themed whisky to be produced

International awards

On 30 April 2024, the Circumstance Distillery Single Grain Estate Whisky earned a gold medal at the San Francisco World Spirits Competition.

Events

English Whisky Festival

The English whisky festival is an annual whisky event that is hosted by the English Whisky Society / Explore English Whisky and takes place in Birmingham at different points in November. There have been 3 events so far which consisted of master classes, whisky tasting and other activities.

The first event took place on 18 November 2023, it was hosted online by due to COVID 19, and contained 30 whiskies from 14 distilleries. The second event took place on 18 November 2023, it consisted of 32 distilleries and contained two whisky master classes, one by the Cooper King Distillery and one by The English Whisky Co. The Third Event took place on 23 November 2024, it consisted of 30 whisky distilleries and contained a selection of festival exclusive whiskies, some of the oldest English whiskies available and a free whisky tasting glass.

English whisky day

English whisky day is an annual whisky event that takes place at Westminster Hall in London to promote and bring awareness of the growing English whisky sector in England.

The first event was held on 28 November 2023 and consisted of 16 whisky producers. A second event was held on 14 March 2025 which was hosted by the MP for Thirsk and Malton Kevin Hollinrake which was attended by 50 MP's and Lords and over 200 guests.

Whisky Trail

On 28 August 2018, the Wine and Spirit Trade Association launched an English-Welsh Whisky Trail.

English distilleries that are on the trail include:

# Adnams Cooper House Distillery
# Bimber Distillery
# Chase Distillery
# Cooper King Distillery
# Copper Rivet Distillery
# Cotswolds Distillery
# Dartmoor Distillery
# Durhams Distillery
# East London Liquor Company
# The English Whisky Co
# Hicks and Healey Distillery
# Isle of Wight Distillery
# The Lakes Distillery
# The London Distillery Co (Closed)

Further reading

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See also

* Food and drink industry in England
* New world whisky

References

Notes

External links

* English Whisky Geographical Indication (GI
12

Organisations

Exploring English Whisky

British Distillers Alliance

Briggs of Burton

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English whisky
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