English Distillery Experimenting With Peated Whisky
England’s Lancaster Spirits Co. is has announced the launch of a limited experimental peated single malt whisky program. Lancaster is still basically a start-up distillery and does not expect its inaugural release of an in-house single malt until next year at the very earliest, but the company is still proceeding to lay further groundwork for its future. Keeping that in mind, they are set to embark on a four week trial run of making peated whisky, exploring different degrees of peating, starting at 50 PPM.
Over the course of the four-week trial, the distillery will fill five first-fill bourbon barrels per week, yielding a total of just 20 barrels of peated single malt for 2026. Each 200-litre bourbon barrel will be filled at 63.5% ABV, consistent with Lancaster Spirits Co’s existing unpeated spirit, and will be laid down for a minimum of three years before it can be legally considered single malt whisky. Should the trial prove successful, the distillery intends to introduce peated production as an annual fixture, potentially extending to a four or six-week run in future years.
A small allocation of the 20 barrels will be made available for purchase, with casks priced at £4,200 each, consistent with the distillery’s existing first-fill bourbon barrel offering. Interest has already been significant: several casks have been pre-sold ahead of this announcement, and availability is expected to be limited. Those interested in securing one of the remaining casks are encouraged to get in touch with the distillery directly as soon as possible.
