An English distillery has taken the top honour in this year’s The Whisky Exchange Whisky of the Year competition, marking a milestone moment for the UK’s fast-growing whisky scene.
White Peak Distillery’s Wire Works Bourbon Cask took the trophy following a blind customer tasting in London, the first time an English whisky has secured the accolade.
The annual compo invites enthusiasts to sample six unlabelled drams at the retailer’s Great Portland Street store. Voters select a single winner, with the process designed to eliminate preconceptions around age statements, regions or distillery prestige.
This year, Wire Works Bourbon Cask rose above traditional favourites, including Bowmore 15 Year Old and Glen Moray 18 Year Old, to secure the top spot.
The annual competition invites enthusiasts to sample six unlabelled drams at The Whisky Exchange’s Great Portland Street store…
Whisky of the Year: Wire Works Bourbon Cask – White Peak Distillery
Derbyshire’s White Peak Distillery earned widespread applause on the night as Wire Works Bourbon Cask emerged victorious. Bottled at 53.4% ABV, this core expression is drawn exclusively from first-fill bourbon barrels, a maturation that gives the whisky its characteristic mix of creamy sweetness and subtle smoke.
On the nose and palate, the whisky offers a distinctive combination of bonfire smoke, vanilla cheesecake, white chocolate, lemon curd and candied ginger.
Founder Max Vaughan said the award is “beyond anything we could have imagined,” adding that nearly ten years of distillery development have led to this moment. As Whisky of the Year, Wire Works Bourbon Cask will front a year-long promotional campaign across The Whisky Exchange throughout 2026, including discounts and in-store tastings.
Selected by The Whisky Exchange team, Hampden Estate 1753 has been named Spirit of the Year. This three year old Jamaican rum is aged in ex-bourbon barrels and fermented with wild yeast, producing a high-ester profile that speaks to nearly 300 years of tradition at Hampden.
At 46% ABV, the rum delivers a vibrant burst of tropical and herbal flavours: pineapple, banana and toffee, layered with the distinctive Hampden funk – hints of petrol, spice and nutmeg. Long fermentation, natural spring water and traditional pot-still distillation contribute to this expressive rum.
Its win this year coincides with a major relief initiative. In response to recent devastation in Jamaica, The Whisky Exchange will donate £6 from every bottle of Hampden 1753 sold to Support Jamaica, the official recovery fund coordinated by the country’s Office of Disaster Preparedness and Emergency Management. Additional fundraising activities will run throughout the year.
The Whisky Exchange team selected independent bottler The Heart Cut as Producer of the Year for 2026. Founded in 2023 by Georgie Bell and Fabrizio Leoni, the company has quickly built a reputation for precise cask selection and a portfolio that highlights both emerging and established distilleries from around the world.
The Heart Cut’s approach centres on one-off single cask bottlings, each chosen to express something individual about the distillery it comes from. Among its praised releases is the Fielden 2019 4 Year Old, bottled at 56.6% ABV, a representative example of the producer’s focus on clarity of flavour and careful maturation.
Co-founder Bell described the win as “an incredible validation of the passion, graft and care we put into every release,” noting that the recognition extends to the distilleries they collaborate with.
White Peak Distillery’s Wire Works Bourbon Cask named The Whisky Exchange Whisky of the Year 2026, marking the first time an English whisky has won the award.
Spirit of the Year was awarded to Hampden Estate 1753, a Jamaican rum aged three years in ex-bourbon barrels, and lauded for its high-ester tropical profile.
The Whisky Exchange will donate £6 per bottle of Hampden 1753 to Jamaica’s official disaster relief fund, supporting recovery after recent devastation.
Producer of the Year went to The Heart Cut, an independent bottler founded in 2023 and praised for its single cask releases and selective approach to maturation and distillery partnerships.
Notable releases from The Heart Cut include Fielden 2019 4 Year Old.
Beer has Oktoberfest. Wine has Beaujolais Nouveau Day. Now whisky has a date of its own. Or, at least, The Scotch Malt Whisky Society would like it to. The Society has launched The Whisky Equinox, an annual occasion intended to mark the point in the year when cooler evenings arrive and whisky drinkers start reaching…
Canary Wharf workers, consider this your most important lunch meeting of the week. New pub The Tallyman is celebrating its arrival in the Wharf by giving away 200 free lobster rolls worth £18 each on Thursday 17 September. From midday until 3pm, the first 200 people to visit its outdoor Tallyman Seafood Shack will get…
Glen Scotia has turned to a mythical guardian for the fourth whisky in its Icons of Campbeltown series. The penultimate instalment in this five‑part annual release, inspired by the folklore carved into Campbeltown’s 14th‑century market cross, pays tribute to the Griffin, the half-eagle, half-lion creature said to have watched over Campbeltown’s harbour and protected its…
The Luxe Review 
An English distillery has taken the top honour in this year’s The Whisky Exchange Whisky of the Year competition, marking a milestone moment for the UK’s fast-growing whisky scene.
White Peak Distillery’s Wire Works Bourbon Cask took the trophy following a blind customer tasting in London, the first time an English whisky has secured the accolade.
The annual compo invites enthusiasts to sample six unlabelled drams at the retailer’s Great Portland Street store. Voters select a single winner, with the process designed to eliminate preconceptions around age statements, regions or distillery prestige.
This year, Wire Works Bourbon Cask rose above traditional favourites, including Bowmore 15 Year Old and Glen Moray 18 Year Old, to secure the top spot.
Whisky of the Year: Wire Works Bourbon Cask – White Peak Distillery
Derbyshire’s White Peak Distillery earned widespread applause on the night as Wire Works Bourbon Cask emerged victorious. Bottled at 53.4% ABV, this core expression is drawn exclusively from first-fill bourbon barrels, a maturation that gives the whisky its characteristic mix of creamy sweetness and subtle smoke.
On the nose and palate, the whisky offers a distinctive combination of bonfire smoke, vanilla cheesecake, white chocolate, lemon curd and candied ginger.
Founder Max Vaughan said the award is “beyond anything we could have imagined,” adding that nearly ten years of distillery development have led to this moment. As Whisky of the Year, Wire Works Bourbon Cask will front a year-long promotional campaign across The Whisky Exchange throughout 2026, including discounts and in-store tastings.
£60.75, The Whisky Exchange
Spirit of the Year: Hampden Estate 1753 – Jamaica
Selected by The Whisky Exchange team, Hampden Estate 1753 has been named Spirit of the Year. This three year old Jamaican rum is aged in ex-bourbon barrels and fermented with wild yeast, producing a high-ester profile that speaks to nearly 300 years of tradition at Hampden.
At 46% ABV, the rum delivers a vibrant burst of tropical and herbal flavours: pineapple, banana and toffee, layered with the distinctive Hampden funk – hints of petrol, spice and nutmeg. Long fermentation, natural spring water and traditional pot-still distillation contribute to this expressive rum.
Its win this year coincides with a major relief initiative. In response to recent devastation in Jamaica, The Whisky Exchange will donate £6 from every bottle of Hampden 1753 sold to Support Jamaica, the official recovery fund coordinated by the country’s Office of Disaster Preparedness and Emergency Management. Additional fundraising activities will run throughout the year.
£63.25, The Whisky Exchange
Producer of the Year: The Heart Cut
The Whisky Exchange team selected independent bottler The Heart Cut as Producer of the Year for 2026. Founded in 2023 by Georgie Bell and Fabrizio Leoni, the company has quickly built a reputation for precise cask selection and a portfolio that highlights both emerging and established distilleries from around the world.
The Heart Cut’s approach centres on one-off single cask bottlings, each chosen to express something individual about the distillery it comes from. Among its praised releases is the Fielden 2019 4 Year Old, bottled at 56.6% ABV, a representative example of the producer’s focus on clarity of flavour and careful maturation.
Co-founder Bell described the win as “an incredible validation of the passion, graft and care we put into every release,” noting that the recognition extends to the distilleries they collaborate with.
£61.25, The Whisky Exchange
Main points at a glance
Whisky season now has an official start date, and unique drams to celebrate
Beer has Oktoberfest. Wine has Beaujolais Nouveau Day. Now whisky has a date of its own. Or, at least, The Scotch Malt Whisky Society would like it to. The Society has launched The Whisky Equinox, an annual occasion intended to mark the point in the year when cooler evenings arrive and whisky drinkers start reaching…
This new Canary Wharf pub is giving away 200 free lobster rolls
Canary Wharf workers, consider this your most important lunch meeting of the week. New pub The Tallyman is celebrating its arrival in the Wharf by giving away 200 free lobster rolls worth £18 each on Thursday 17 September. From midday until 3pm, the first 200 people to visit its outdoor Tallyman Seafood Shack will get…
Glen Scotia releases 12 Year Old Icons No.4 whisky shaped by Vin Santo casks and Griffin guardian
Glen Scotia has turned to a mythical guardian for the fourth whisky in its Icons of Campbeltown series. The penultimate instalment in this five‑part annual release, inspired by the folklore carved into Campbeltown’s 14th‑century market cross, pays tribute to the Griffin, the half-eagle, half-lion creature said to have watched over Campbeltown’s harbour and protected its…
Share this: