In just a few years since they opened in 2018, Abingdon Distillery has won several awards for their range of artisan London Dry gins which are made in their premises at Coxeter House in Abingdon’s Ock Street.
Now, Jordan and his team are adding other spirits to their list which have been created with equal care. In March 2023 customers will be able to select from British Rum and as well as an array of flavoured gins.
Abingdon Distillery is one of the few UK distilleries making rum entirely from scratch on site. Most buy raw rum from the Caribbean before adding spices and flavourings themselves, reducing overheads and the need for equipment to ferment and distil the rum.
The master distiller in Abingdon is, however, using a very different production method. They are making the rum from raw sugar cane called Panela, which is pressed sugar cane juice that has been evaporated leaving unrefined raw cane sugar. By sourcing their raw sugar materials as close to the sugar cane plant as possible, Abingdon Distillery can ensure their rum has a unique flavour characteristic of traditional rum when it is distilled. The Panela which they buy comes from one Columbian plantation and is organically certified, so their rum is single origin and organic. Their rum will also pay tribute to the classic Caribbean style of an original spiced rum using spices and fruits from the islands. The distillery will also be laying down some casks of rum using different barrels and they hope to release some of that which is around one to two years old.
To coincide with the launch of the new British rum, the Abingdon Rum Club will start in February. This is a monthly subscription with a set of miniatures of rum delivered every month of a new limited-edition flavour, created by their master distiller.
For whisky lovers, you are also in for a treat as the distillery will be selling their own English whisky too, although the ageing process takes three years, by summer 2023 there will be a limited edition private 30l cask for customers to buy. Whilst Scotch whisky is defined in law to strict procedures, English whisky allows the freedom of experimental methods of production and equipment to be used.
The use of large wooden washbacks (rather than stainless steel), which remain open at the top thus creating additional and unique flavours to be produced whilst the malted barley and yeast undergo a 7-day fermentation process. This fermentation process sees bacteria and other naturally occurring yeasts in the distillery ‘infect’ the fermented liquid after 3 or 4 days. This starts a further fermentation process, creating amazing flavours due to ester compounds being produced which are the flavours for apple/pear/banana and pineapple. By opting for wooden tanks rather than the more modern stainless-steel tanks, not only are the vats beautiful to look at but their interiors have been lightly toasted, enabling them to interact more during the fermentation process.
Once fermentation is complete, the wash is distilled in the whisky still nicknamed ‘Big Phil.’ This is a 650l copper pot still with a 6-plate side column. Using the column section, Abingdon Distillery is able to create a lighter style of whisky before it is then transferred into their barrels. By selecting ex-bourbon, Rye, and red wine barrels in which to age the whisky, along with a few secret and ‘whacky’ barrels also being lined up for single cask release, you can be sure of something wonderful to look forward to in just three short years’ time. Come summertime this year, the distillery will be offering a few limited edition private 30l casks to be purchased by people to store at the distillery until it is of age to be bottled and sent to them.
To see how the incredible process of distilling takes place, you can book a gin and rum distillery tour and tasting experience with prices starting from just £22.00.
To book simply visit abingdondistillery.com/distillerytours
