Summerton Whisky Club’s December 2024 Club Bottle – The English Distillery Oloroso Sherry Cask Single Malt Whisky

In April of this year, The English Distillery won the World’s Best Single Malt award at the World Whiskies Awards 2024 for their Sherry Cask Matured single malt, a fantastic result for the Norfolk-based distillery that became England’s first whisky distillery in over 100 years upon its opening in 2007.

Upon hearing the news I knew I wanted to share an experience with Members based on this award winning whisky, whilst creating something that was unique and just for us. Luckily I know the team at the distillery well, with them having created a Club Bottle for us in 2021 and them being regular exhibitors at the Summerton Whisky Festival. Therefore I set them the challenge of creating our Christmas Club Bottle, thinking that fruity sherry notes are perfect for the festive period.

With the team helping to pick and taste the best casks in their warehouse, we narrowed down the choice to two styles, one based on the brief and another delicious whisky, aged in American oak. Both are lovely, but as I wanted to share the experience based on the award winning whisky, as well as something fruity for festivities, the oloroso sherry casks won.

The important difference between this and the award winner is that that whisky was aged in Pedro Ximénez sherry casks, ensuring whilst similar we also have something very unique to enjoy too.

I hope that you like the whisky I have chosen for us. As ever you should enjoy your whisky how you like it best, whether neat or with water, ice or mixed. For those who are unsure from their first taste I can recommend leaving the bottle for a couple of weeks after opening, as a whisky will often evolve. And those wanting to experiment, see how the flavours change when you add a drop of water or two to the glass.