Lakes Distillery

The Lakes Distillery is the focus of the whisky world, having won the World's Best Single Malt Whisky accolade. CEO Nigel Mills CBE related the Cumbrian distillery's ten-year journey, its expansion plans and a mission to make English whisky a globally recognised brand. Report by Andy Probert.

Lakes Distillery CEO, Nigel Mills

From a once-derelict Victorian farmstead in a UNESCO World Heritage site to the world's most exclusive bars, the ascent of The Lakes Distillery to the top has been nothing short of remarkable. This journey culminated in The Whiskymaker's Reserve No.4 winning the ‘World's Best Single Malt Whisky’ in 2022.

The distillery, set up on the shores of Bassenthwaite Lake in Cumbria, is one of England's largest whisky, gin and vodka creators. Alongside its spirits production, the brand also welcomes thousands of tourists to its visitor centre, shop and bistro.

While further expansion and global sales beckon, the journey has not been entirely serene. Planning and financial battles threatened the dream. But the distillery is now permanently looking up - and on a bold mission to establish English whisky in its own right.

Anticipating change

The distillery's origins are founded on its visionaries' tenacity, ambition and luck: Paul Currie and Nigel Mills CBE. Mr Currie, son of a renowned whisky MD for Chivas-Seagrams and one part of a father and son team who founded Isle of Arran Distillers, spotted the potential of the Lake District as a unique location.

Mr Currie identified a 160-year-old derelict farmstead on the banks of the River Derwent – distilling the idea of the lure of a UNESCO World Heritage site, being close to water, stunning

landscape and an idyllic setting. The site was ideal for inspiring whisky-making.

Having won a two-year planning battle in 2011, Mr Currie's story piqued the interest of Mr Mills, a retail businessman and hotelier in his own right.

“I thought it was an interesting opportunity,” said Mr Mills, “as I had seen the wine industry change over 30 years, with traditional wine-makers of Spain and France being challenged by new countries. I believed the whisky industry was ripe for challenge, and English whisky could be a part of that trend.”

With both men at the helm, supported by Alan Rutherford, a former production director at Diageo responsible for their Scotch whisky distilleries, the distillery became a reality in 2014, thanks to £6m in private and government finance.

The distillery initially forged its reputation on quality gin, vodka, and blended whisky, with The One becoming the first blended whisky to be made from the finest aged whiskies from around the British Isles. It won numerous awards.

World-beaters in a bottle

The first bottling of the inaugural Lakes Single Malt Whisky, Genesis, in 2018, was auctioned for £7,900, breaking two world records: the most expensive single malt sold from a new distillery and for

THE LAKES DISTILLERY I PROFILE

a bottle of English whisky sold at auction. The company then set about chasing the ambition of creating one of the world's leading single malt whisky brands. Inspired by their surroundings, the distillery adopted the Quatrefoil as an icon representing the company's core values of faith, hope, luck and love.

“We wanted to create something extra special from the whisky, the blend, the brand and the look,” Mr Mills said. “We wanted to present The Lakes in a way that embodies the business's culture, beliefs and aspirations.

“Whether it's our choice of barley, obsessive focus on cask selection and maturation, or passion for the art of blending, we want to share our story and for people to understand how important the focus on quality is at The Lakes.”

Aside from further whisky evolution with the aid of whiskymaker Dhavall Gandhi, the business was boosted in 2019 when The Lakes Vodka was named the ‘World's Best Vodka’.

The company launched its first widely-available single malt whisky, The Whiskymaker’s Reserve, in the same year and saw the 6,000 bottles sold out in a week.

Quickly gaining a reputation for quality and flavour creation, it also became clear that while The Lakes Distillery respects the traditions of whisky’s rich heritage, the company remains open to a world of other influences. In particular, the approach to whisky-making, and the award-winning Whiskymaker's Reserve series, takes inspiration from Cognac's cellar masters, where the distillery has taken the concept of élevage - a proactive involvement in whisky's maturation - to create intriguing layers of flavour profiles.

Mr Mills likened the whisky-making process to an artist setting out on a journey to create a masterpiece, comparing the different flavours used to design the whisky to the colours and hues used by an artist to accentuate their storytelling.

With a modern approach to the craft, it is maturation and blending that defines The Lakes Single Malt. Unlike other distilleries, rather than sealing the casks and simply waiting to blend the result, The Lakes Distillery regularly samples every cask, frequently effecting change to evolve an array of intriguing layers of flavour.

Whether changing a cask’s location or transferring the spirit between casks, it is only by knowing each cask intimately, how the flavours are evolving and how they can be blended to complement, enhance, deepen, broaden, or contrast, that The Lakes Distillery can create the desired depth and complexity.

This age-old art is called élevage. It is active involvement demanding patience and time. Hand-selecting the final casks, The Lakes Whisky is then married together for up to a year before bottling. It is this process that sets The Lakes apart. And it is the reason the company has been able to pursue a carefully targeted approach that sees The Lakes single malt whisky available on menus in highend bars and restaurants across the world.

Opportunities await

In 2021, the company completed a renovation project to expand its whisky production from around 130,000 litres per annum to 375,000 litres. The project also enhanced its state-of-the-art whisky studio and blending lab and created a new whisky warehousing facility.

Additional funding has been secured enabling The Lakes to increase its single malt whisky production and export the brand to the USA, France and Japan as global demand for whisky continues to outstrip supply, with the market forecast to grow from $60bn to $108bn over the next decade.

A natural extension for the Cumbrian whisky-maker was the 2022 launch of the English Whisky Guild, of which The Lakes Distillery is a founding member. The Guild seeks to ensure English whisky becomes a category in its own right and has submitted a Geographical Indicator to DEFRA to legally define English whisky and ensure consistent standards among all distillers.

With its roots in a UNESCO World Heritage Site, The Lakes continues to adopt a sustainable approach to its operations. These include using a biomass boiler to heat the buildings, recycling water, using heat recovery and with a state-of-the-art plant, keeping its carbon footprint to a minimum.

“The Lakes is not only helping the local environment,” Mr Mills added, “but supporting the rural economy in many ways, such as having a visitor centre that attracts thousands of people annually. The aim is to excite people by having a quality brand that delivers. The business has firm foundations, and huge opportunities now await.” n