Introduction
Whisky production commenced following the installation of Hilda, our 1000 litre pot/column hybrid still, back in November 2017.
The spirit has to mature in wood (casks, barrels, etc.) for at least three years before it can be called whisky.
Our very first batch of ‘new make’ (as it is called after it has come out of the still) went into wood on the 10th of January 2018 and then sold out within hours of the launch on the 23rd of January 2021. Subsequent casks are now becoming available and appear in the online shop as soon as they are ready for sale.
We are one of a small number of distilleries south of the Scottish border making our own wash, the beer that is distilled to produce whisky, on site. We use only the finest malted barley to produce a distinctive and characteristic new-make spirit.
The spirit is currently being aged in a mixture of ex-bourbon, Oloroso, Pedro Ximenez and ex-Peated casks together with a couple of secrets so keep watching!
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Expressions
We have four expressions in our range of whiskies and plan to maintain a stock of these most of the time. They are:
Ex-Bourbon cask matured
This is our original which we launched in Jan 2021. Each batch is single cask. None are coloured or chill filtered. Look on the small handwritten label on the back of the bottle and then cross reference to our whisky release page.
You can then read all the geeky details about that particular batch! Bottled at 43.8%.
Tasting Notes
Nose: Sweet Apricot, Chocolate-coated nuts, candied orange peel, cinnamon, and banana
Palate: More oily nuts with chocolate praline, dried fruit, banana with a cinnamon spice
Finish: soft and sweet finish
See tasting wheel below
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Ex-Oloroso Finish
Our first batch of ex-oloroso spent its entire life in ex-oloroso casks. Subsequent expressions are being finished in quarter casks. A really great whisky for the sherry lover! Again, all details can be found on our whisky release page.
Tasting Notes
Nose: Blackcurrant starburst, cinnamon, earthy barley, and dark chocolate
Palate: Dried apricots, earthy vanilla, ginger snaps, and stewed plums
Finish: Waxed fruit peel, clove, and chocolate ice-cream
See tasting wheel below
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Ex-Pedro Ximenex Finish
Like the ex-oloroso, our first batch of ex-pedro ximenez spent its entire life in ex-pedro ximenez casks. Subsequent expressions are being finished in quarter casks. The colour of this whisky is amazing and the smell really reminds us of Christmas! Again, all details can be found on our whisky release page.
None chill filtered, not coloured and bottled at 46%.
Tasting Notes
Nose: Stewed dates, espresso martini, barley, and cinnamon
Palate: Sticky dried fruits with marmalade, walnuts, and gingerbread – Christmas cake in a glass!
Finish: Rich and sweet with aromatic spice in support
See tasting wheel below
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Ex-Peated Finish
We can’t use peated barley in the wash production (a long story) but decided to get our hands on some ex-peated (Islay) casks. We’re so glad we did as the result is something else! A lovely amount of peaty smoke and then a nice long finish. Again, all details can be found on our whisky release page.
None chill filtered, not coloured and bottled at 46%.
Tasting Notes
Nose: Caramel, stewed apple, soft green fruit
Palate: Peach and orange peel with a dusting of brown sugar and oak char
Finish: Smoke and sweet fruit
Matt Dugdale said “with whiffs of peat smoke, candied citrus peel and crème brûlée, this whisky is a perfect winter warmer”
See tasting wheel below
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Awards
We were really pleased to hear our ex-bourbon cask aged whisky won a Gold Medal in The Spirits Business Global World Whisky Masters competition 2022
Within weeks of its release our Single Malt Won a Silver Medal in the International Spirits Challenge 2021!!
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Whisky Tasting Wheel
We have developed the tasting wheel, shown below, to help you identify the tastes and smells you experience when drinking our whiskies. If you have any comments please drop us a line.
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Reviews
Brian’s Malt Musings
The latest review is by Brian’s Malt Musings from 4 March 2022, and can be found here: http://malt-musings.blogspot.com/2022/03/newer-distilleries-henstone.html – thank you Brian. Brian collected his review sample whilst at the Southport Whisky Festival
The Whisky Chaps
At recent review is by The Whisky Chaps, from 19 November 2021, and can be found here: https://thewhiskeychaps.com/henstone-single-malt-whisky-43-8-abv/ – thank you guys!!
No Nonsense Whisky
There’s a great review by Vin at No Nonsense Whisky on Youtube which you can see here https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GC4v7dUl7PI – thank you Vin!
Some Whisky Bloke
Visit https://somewhiskybloke.com/2021/03/03/henstone/ where Marcus Parmenter (aka somewhiskybloke) has written quite a piece about us – thank you Marcus!!
Whisky Pad
Andrew at the Whisky Pad has also put pen to paper (or finger to keyboard) and you can read his review by visiting https://whiskypad.com/henstone-single-malt – thank you Andrew!!
Ryebeck
There’s also a really nice article about the launch of our whisky on the Ryebeck (the company who supplied our still) site which you can read here https://www.ryebeckltd.com/henstone-launches-its-much-awaited-single-malt-whisky/ – this article was written by Robin Goldsmith (aka The Write Taste) and you can visit his site here https://www.thewritetaste.co.uk/
Spirit and Wood
Alistair at Spirit and Wood (twitter = @spiritandwood) provided the following
Nose: youthful with lemon, vanilla, apple and white wine gums;
Palate: the dry acidic bite of white wine getting sweeter towards the back palate, custard creams and sugar mice
Others
A friend of Chris’ had the following to say: “Without any hesitation I can say that for a distillery which has only been around since 2016 the Henstone Whisky is up there as one of our favourites. It is so smooth and the palate description on the website is spot on”