If you’re a whisky fan living in the United Kingdom, it’s hard not to notice the meteoric rise of English whisky distilling. It wasn’t long ago that you’d only see (but never dream of buying) the occasional bottle of English spirit in specialist whisky merchants. English whisky is becoming more and more mainstream, with a growing reputation for quality and innovation that becomes more firmly cemented as each new distillery starts releasing. This is something that we at the Water of Life have been following for a while, having written about distilleries like the Spirit of Yorkshire, Cooper King, and Copper Rivet. Now, it’s time for us to touch on the distillery that sparked English whisky’s rebirth.

Although England had a long history of distillation and whisky production, it was some one hundred years between the closure of the last operating distillery at Lea Valley and the opening of the St George’s Distillery in 2006. The industry has expanded massively since then, with 48 more English distilleries coming into being since then. Only 22 of these have released a whisky so far, meaning there is a lot still to see from this growing whisky nation. Cooper King Distillery have generated an excellent map which demonstrates just how quickly the industry has grown and, more importantly, which distilleries have released their own spirit.

The St George’s Distillery was originally established by James Nelstrop as a way to avoid properly retiring. I should add at this stage that, although the distillery is officially known as the “St George’s Distillery”, the name “the English Distillery” seems to be used interchangeably, including by the company itself. As post-retirement hobbies go, reintroducing whisky production to England is among the most impressive. I can only imagine James’ reaction to the renaissance that the St George’s Distillery triggered.

The St George’s Distillery produces a range of whiskies, including both peated and unpeated expressions. The distillery’s lofty ambition of producing the finest single malt has driven me to examine the peated Smokey expression. This release is clearly a statement of intent: English whisky is coming to challenge single malt Scotch whisky at what Scotland’s distillers have a reputation for doing better than anyone else. But how does the spirit stack up?

The English Distillery – Smokey

English Single Malt Whisky

43% ABV. Aged in ex-bourbon casks. No age statement.

Non-chill-filtered. Colouring not mentioned.

£47.50 (from the distillery website) or £44 (from Amazon)

Nose: Sweet aromas lead the way, with vanilla, honey, and candied lemon. There’s a touch of darker fruit – possibly blueberry or raspberry – as well as a light spice from pepper and aniseed. The peat smoke note is unmistakable but not at all overpowering.

Palate: Initially, there’s a delicate balance between peat and sweetness. The lighter notes of caramel, vanilla, pear, and lemon quickly give way to wood and peat smoke. This is accompanied by ginger and a cereal biscuit bite – perhaps a hobnob biscuit.

Finish: The smoke notes slowly fade to leave a light peat, brown sugar, a touch of bitterness (has the brown sugar been burned?) and a pleasant creamy texture.

Opinion: I find the Smokey a little unsophisticated but nonetheless very pleasant. This doesn’t seem like an attempt to recreate an Islay peat bomb. Instead, it’s quite a genteel, dare I say English, approach to a peated single malt. Essentially, this is what St George’s Distillery has managed to get completely right: they’ve created a peated whisky that isn’t trying to copy a typical peated Scottish whisky, but instead to compete against it on its own terms. The result is unique without being challenging.

With the Smokey, the St George’s Distillery hasn’t quite created the finest single malt yet. It lacks a bit of complexity, and the sweet palate and slightly bitter finish will not be for everyone. However, these are really its only faults. On its merit as a spirit, it’s interesting enough to warrant trying. It also goes down extremely smoothly for a peated malt. If you’re not watching carefully, you could quickly find a couple of drams of this whisky turning into quite a significant session. The price is extremely competitive as well: this stacks up well against other whiskies under £50.

If you’re not already taking English whisky seriously, perhaps this is the next whisky you need to purchase. I know I will definitely be buying the Smokey again.

6.5/10