New largest distillery in England opens gates

The Lakes Distillery – said to be the largest distillery in England – has officially opened its gates and started production of English whisky.

The Lakes Distillery, which launched The One blended British whisky last year, has officially opened its gates

The distillery’s visitors’ centre, bar and bistro was opened on Monday 15 December, while visitors were also given tours of the vicinity.

With £6 million investment, The Lakes Distillery – the first distillery to be built in the UK’s Lake District in more than a century – is the brainchild of former Isle of Arran Distillers co-founder, Paul Currie, and former Dewars master distiller, Chris Anderson.

“The Lakes Distillery is set to be a key attraction for the Lake District and we estimate that we will accommodate approximately 55,000 visitors each year,” said Currie.

“It is wonderful to see everything come together, from the sympathetic renovation of our stunning Victorian farm and the formation of our highly skilled team, to the start of production of our spirits and the development of the menu and style of our bistro.”

In October 2013, the distillery bottled the world’s first British blended whisky, called The One, which brought together a range of whiskies from across the British Isles.

Almost one year later, the producer released The Lakes Gin, said to be the only gin distilled in Cumbria. It uses water from the region’s River Derwent and a mix of traditional gin botanicals as well as bilberry, meadowsweet, hawthorn and heather, foraged where possible in the local countryside.

Meanwhile, distillation of The Lakes Single Malt and The Lakes Vodka commenced in September. The distillery expects to produce up to one million bottles of The Lakes Single Malt each year.