Cotswolds Flaxen Vale Batch No. 01/2023 The Harvest Series (53.9%)

A single malt from the Cotswolds Distillery, released as Flaxen Vale, Batch No. 01/2023 in The Harvest Series. The distillery was founded in 2014, and the spirit is twice distilled in copper pot stills. The outturn is 3,500 bottles, and the packaging carries a landscape painting by the artist Annabel Playfair. It matured in STR casks (shaved, toasted and re-charred American oak) together with Spanish Oloroso sherry casks. It is bottled at 53.9%, non-chill-filtered and with natural colour. The nose shows peach and cherry with soft vanilla and toasted wood. On the palate there are wildflower honey, orange zest, creamy caramel pudding and a pinch of salt, ending with a touch of oak smoke.