And from one Local Barley release to another Local Barley release but from a different region and heritage – Cotswolds first single malt. Cotswolds uses barley grown in the area, so the Local Barley moniker can be used here freely.

The Cotswolds region is a lovely one. I passed the area on my way from Birmingham to Stratford-Upon-Avon (Shakespeare’s birthplace), which in case you don’t know, means it’s English whisky and not Scottish whisky. But the region never had a whisky distillery, until the Cotswolds Distillery opened in 2014 that is.

Three years passed by with a few young single malts test batches releases along the way and eventually, a first proper single malt release. So let’s check out 2 young single malts and the proper single malt whisky from this English whisky distillery.

Test Batch Series, 5 Months Old, Ex-Sherry, 62.4%

Nose: Subtle malt, sweet red fruit, white pepper, hot spices and after while some herbs freshness. Continue reading →