Product description
Cotswolds Distillery has been in operation since September 2014. It is equipped with three stills, one of which is used exclusively for gin production.
Its owner David Szor has focused on locally grown barley, which he malts in the oldest British malt house in Warminster, and on an extended fermentation period of up to 90 hours. Fresh bourbon barrels and reconditioned and re-charred red wine barrels are usually used for maturation. The Cotswolds Peated Cask presented here is an exception to the rule – the whisky distilled from locally grown barley (the Odyssey variety) was matured in small quarter casks previously used to mature a smoky and peaty spirit. The batch presented here was bottled at 60.4% abv. One of the previous batches won the top prize in its category at the International Whisky Competition in 2020.
Nose : slightly smoky, barley malt, vanilla, toffee, dried apricots, apples, sultanas, cinnamon, cloves, a pinch of white pepper and charred oak.
Palate: fruity and slightly smoky, apples, pears, peaches, vanilla, milk fudge, salted caramel, a touch of cinnamon and pepper and oak tannins.
Finish : medium long, with notes of vanilla, honey, summer fruits, cinnamon, oak and peat smoke in the background.