Pol Roger partners with Leiper’s Fork
Pol Roger Portfolio has agreed to import Tennessee whiskey producer Leiper’s Fork to the UK and oversee its sales and marketing.
Leiper’s Fork will be the second spirit brand to join Pol Roger’s portfolio, which includes Highland single malt Glenfarclas, alongside its namesake Champagne, and wine brands such as Joseph Drouhin.
James Simpson, managing director of Pol Roger Portfolio, said: “One of the things we are most proud of at this company is our commitment to highlighting producers that bring the past to life.
“The philosophy of Leiper’s Fork is one with which we readily identify: independence, control over the process, and above all, making an outstanding product. Their whiskeys offer something unique and exciting that is rarely seen in the UK, and we are proud to count them as part of our portfolio of family-owned producers.”
Based in Leiper’s Fork, Williamson County, the grain-to-glass whiskey producer is said to be the first legal distillery in the town in more than a century. The distillery filled its first barrel in spring 2016 with the aim of reviving small batch whiskey production in the hills of Middle Tennessee.
The producer uses local heritage varieties of corn, wheat, rye and barley that are harvested from the nearby Harpeth River Valley. The grain bills are toasted and a sweet mash fermentation process is used to create the whiskey.
The distillery produces 25,000 gallons of whiskey every year.
Two whiskeys will be available in the UK, Leiper’s Fork Tennessee Whisky and Leiper’s Fork Tennessee Bourbon, both aged for four years. The former was made with 70% corn, 15% rye and 15% malted barley, while the Bourbon was made with 70% corn, 15% wheat and 15% malted barley.
The whiskey has undergone the Lincoln County Process, being filtered through sugar maple wood charcoal chips before going into casks for ageing.
Meanwhile, the Bourbon is said to offer flavours of butterscotch and dried citrus.
Lee Kennedy, proprietor and chief distiller of Leiper’s Fork Distillery, said: “After an exhaustive search, we feel this partnership is an appropriate one, given the values we both hold dear as respective companies: uncompromising attention to detail, quality over quantity, an unquenchable passion for the spirits we produce/represent, and a commitment to total transparency for the benefit of our consumers.
“We feel fortunate to have found a partner with these shared values and are excited about this natural brand alignment.”
In June, Glenfarclas named Aberdeen-based bartender Marcus Gordon as the winner of its 105 Cask Strength Cocktail Competition.
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