The Lakes launches The Whiskymaker's Reserve No.5

The Lakes Distillery has announced the release of the latest limited edition in its Whiskymaker's Reserve single malt whisky series. 

Labelled by the English distillery as "an elegant and Moorish evolution", The Whiskymaker's Reserve No.5 has been matured in bespoke oloroso, Pedro Ximénez and red wine casks, made of Spanish and American oak.

During its creation, The Lakes drew inspiration from the world of Cognac in the principle of élevage. By effecting change throughout maturation process, from making changes to the casks' location to transferring spirit between casks, The Lakes says it sought to "evolve an array of intriguing layers of flavour" for a more complex final liquid.

It comes after The Whiskymaker's Reserve No.4 was named World's Best Single Malt at the World Whiskies Awards 2022.

Dhavall Gandhi, The Lakes' whiskymaker, said: "With The Whiskymaker's Reserve No.5, we wanted to create a whisky with a similar sherry-led profile to previous releases, but with certain characters restrained to achieve a textural refinement.

"This is a whisky with seductively aromatic notes of dark chocolate and dried fruits, and a smooth finish with intricate layers of wood spice."

The Whiskymaker's Reserve No.5 (52% ABV) is available from www.lakesdistillery.com and specialist UK whisky retailers (RRP £70).

To celebrate its release, The Lakes Distillery challenged top bartenders - from venues including Rosewood London, The Northall at Corinthia London, and The Goring Cocktail Bar - to create a riff on the Old Fashioned cocktail using The Whiskymaker's Reserve No.5. The resulting drinks will be available to enjoy at the bars from 1 June throughout the summer.

22 April 2022 - Bethany Whymark