The Whiskymaker's Reserve series is the flagship expression of the Lakes Distillery, each annual release an evolution of whiskymaker Dhavall Gandhi's ongoing Elevage project. Reserve No. 4 continues the house philosophy of building layered, sherry-forward single malts through the patient marrying of casks — primarily oloroso and Pedro Ximénez sherry casks from Jerez, with a smaller proportion of red wine casks adding brightness and lift.
Poured into the glass at 52% and unfiltered, it shows a deep burnished copper. The nose is immediately rich and generous: baked fig, treacle toffee, and dark chocolate orange dominate, with a savoury undertone of polished old oak and a curl of pipe tobacco. Time in the glass reveals dried cherry and marzipan.
The palate is all Christmas cake — raisin, candied peel, brown sugar — laced with espresso and blood orange. There is a surprising vivacity to the texture, a brightness that keeps the sherry sweetness from cloying. Black pepper crackles around the edges, and the whisky feels satisfyingly structured.
The finish is long, with dried fruits and dark chocolate lingering alongside a gentle tannic grip from the wine casks. The Lakes Distillery, founded in 2014 on the banks of the Derwent, is still remarkably young in whisky terms — yet Reserve No. 4 reads with the confidence of a house that knows exactly what it wants to say.
