Cotswolds Distillery and Highgrove make whisky for the king

To honour King Charles III’s 75th birthday, the Cotswolds Distillery has collaborated with Highgrove to create a limited edition whisky.

Named the King’s Birthday Vatting, the whisky is a single malt taken from a unique vatting at the Cotswolds Distillery, created using heritage Plumage Archer barley grown at the Highgrove Estate in Gloucestershire, England. It has been matured in a mix of specially selected Bourbon, Port and ex-red wine casks. The casks were filled in May 2017 and bottled exclusively by the Cotswolds Distillery on the King’s 75th birthday, which was on 14 November 2023. Due to the casks used for ageing, it has a rich flavour profile with notes of red fruits and nutmeg. The finish lingers with spice and dark chocolate. All funds raised from sales will go to The King’s Foundation, which delivers charitable education and training initiatives, including furniture-making, fashion, textiles and craft skills. The foundation presides over the opening of Highgrove Gardens to the public. Scott Simpson, head of group retail for The King’s Foundation, said: “We are delighted to announce the release of the Highgrove King’s Birthday Single Malt Whisky. We are pleased to be working with a local distillery based in the Cotswolds that has created this special edition whisky using barley grown at the Highgrove Estate. “As with all sales of Highgrove products, garden tours and events, proceeds will be used to enable the life and work of The King’s Foundation, including its range of inspiring education and training programmes.” Only 1,500 bottles of the King’s Birthday Vatting are available to purchase – exclusively from the Highgrove Shop at Highgrove Gardens and the Highgrove website – and each comes with a commemorative label and is presented in a royal blue tube. It has an ABV of 50% and a RRP of £175 (US$217). “It has been an honour and a privilege to work with the team at Highgrove again to produce this exceptional and unique English single malt whisky to celebrate the 75th birthday of his majesty King Charles III,” added Dan Szor, founder of the Cotswolds Distillery. In October, the distillery, which is England’s largest whisky producer, launched its first whisky advertising campaign – which was one of our top marketing moves from October.