About Penderyn Whisky
"Absolutely staggering arrival on the palate of malt, landing with almost snowflake delicateness. Immediately a second movement, this time of bitter-sweet fruit, blood orange included, sweeps down over the startled taste buds. Astonishing stuff." – Jim Murray’s Whisky Bible.
Numerous awards at international spirits competitions.
How and why has Penderyn established itself as one of the finest and most delicate malt whiskies in the world?
Any good whisky brings together the following three ingredients: the still, the wood and water. It is, however, the passion and expertise in bringing these elements together that will make the difference between an ordinary whisky and an ethereal spirit which provides delicate and complex experience every time Penderyn is nosed or drunk.
The Still
Each morning our unique copper-pot still is charged with the finest malted barley wash. As the steam heats the liquid it starts to bubble and the vapour rises into our copper column above the still. The column has a number of perforated plates and the vapour will condense on the first plate before being returned to the still. As the process continues the vapour will reach the second plate and so on, before evaporating and falling back to the still, each step leaving the spirit, smoother, softer and more refined. Eventually the spirit is drawn from the seventh plate and piped to our spirit safe where it lands, literally drop by drop, over the course of the day.
This laborious process imparts our raw spirit not only with great complexity, depth and finesse but improves dwell time with the copper and removes many of the undesirable chemical compounds which a conventional two or three pot system cannot achieve.
Arriving at the spirit safe at an industry high of 92% A.B.V. our spirit is virtually free from these chemical compounds and this fact becomes crucial during the cask ageing.
It is a little known fact outside of the industry that a major part of the reason for aging whisky in charred oak barrels is to remove undesirable chemical compounds. This is where the charcoal comes in and the reason why oak barrels are burned or charred prior to filling.
As these compounds are generally absent from our spirit in the first place, it allows us to concentrate on the wood management to primarily build complexity, flavour and depth.
At the end of the day the copper pot is switched off and the result of all this effort is just one cask of spirit.
The Wood
Our consultant, Dr Jim Swan, is not only one the world’s finest Master Distillers but is the world authority on wood management.
Similarly to many distilleries, our initial ageing is in ex-bourbon oak casks. However, in our case no expense is spared in sourcing the finest casks available only from the best 
Our Master Distiller will regularly nose and score each individual cask over many years. At just the right time the whisky is disgorged and recasked into ex-Madeira barrels. We have a special relationship with one of the finest cooperages who themselves only supply the very best
Slowly the spirit will leach the
The Water
Penderyn Distillery is located in the
Our source also provides some of the finest bottled mineral waters in the world.
10,000 years ago the last ice age ended. The ice floes covering
Conclusion
The above ingredients, and an overwhelming passion to produce spirit of uncompromising quality, combine to produce Penderyn, recognised by connoisseurs as one of the finest malt whiskies in the world.
Like Welsh gold our whisky is produced in minute quantities and has to be strictly allocated to the export market.
The next time you taste Penderyn we hope the above knowledge will enhance and enrich your experience.
Dr Jim Swan’s Tasting Notes
At premium strength (46% vol) Penderyn has an exceptionally balanced taste with an aroma of cream toffee and fleetingly of fresh new heather. Then, as the initial sensations fade, the finishing notes of tropical fruits, raisins and vanilla emerge strongly and are long lasting.
