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The Oxford Artisan Distillery

On 27 July 2017 The Oxford Artisan Distillery opened its doors, and in doing so marked the very first time that legal distillation had taken place in the ancient city's long and illustrious history. It was established by former music mogul Tom Nicolson with a commitment to a genuine grain-to-glass ethos and an ambition to craft handmade spirits such as gin, absinthe, vodka and rye whisky in a unique way that would reflect Oxford's artistic and imaginative personality.

In order to do so, Nicolson enlisted the help of the award-winning master distiller Cory Mason, who arrived with a Masters degree in distillation, a cult following and the track record of having helped create expressions with brands such as Silent Pool and Dark Matter. Mason was joined at The Oxford Artisan Distillery by George Bennett, an organic farmer at Sandy Lane Farm in Thame, who now grows the unique type of rye the distillery uses to create its neutral spirit (which the distillery then prepares on site). Bennet introduced Nicolson to Canadian archaeobotanist John Letts, who spent over 20 years researching the science behind the ancient heritage grains that were commonplace in Britain in the Middle Ages before the rise of industrial agriculture and the monocultures grown today. Now these genetically diverse populations of rye, wheat and barley are sustainably grown exclusively for The Oxford Artisan Distillery.

Cultivating an individual neutral grain spirit is only part of the process, however. With the help of South Devon Railway Engineering, The Oxford Artisan Distillery designed and built its own stills. The historical, industrial-style influenced coppersmiths, lead by Paul Pridham, worked using a design inspired by a bootleg rum distillery Mason’s brother observed in Haiti, which makes its spirit in old steam engines. Two stills: Nautilus (2,200 litre) and Nemo (500 litre), were produced and named after Jules Verne’s fictional submarine and its captain, which were then accompanied by two five-metre tall 40-plate copper distillation columns.

For the foreseeable future an 18th century Grade II-listed threshing barn will house The Oxford Artisan Distillery’s casks and grain, although plans have been mooted for the construction of a new barn. Current releases from The Oxford Artisan Distillery available here include its very own Oxford Dry Gin and Oxford Rye Vodka

We’ve previously covered The Oxford Artisan Distillery in this wonderful blog which has plenty of info as well as interviews and pictures and everything!

The Oxford Artisan Distillery Rye Whisky - Purple Grain

70cl, 53.6%

Happy Birthday to The Oxford Artisan Distillery! This rye whisky was released to mark its 5th anniversary, a cask strength expression that follows its house mash bill of 70% heritage rye, 20% wheat,…  More info

The Oxford Artisan Distillery Rye Whisky - Purple Grain
$76.37

The Oxford Artisan Distillery Rye Whisky Batch 7 - Easy Ryder

70cl, 50%

Blended from nine casks of varying char levels, all American oak apart from a single moscatel cask, this seventh batch of rye whisky from The Oxford Artisan Distillery has been named Easy Ryder as…  More info

The Oxford Artisan Distillery Rye Whisky Batch 7 - Easy Ryder
$56.04

The Oxford Artisan Distillery Rye Whisky - Batch 4

70cl, 51.3%

Here we have the fourth batch of The Oxford Artisan Distillery's Rye Whisky, which has earned the title The Graduate according to the label. The spirit has been made with heritage rye grains (which…  More info

The Oxford Artisan Distillery Rye Whisky - Batch 4
$95.48

The Oxford Artisan Distillery Rye Whisky - The Tawny Pipe

70cl, 56%

The very first single cask expression of Oxford Rye Whisky, and it's exclusive to Master of Malt! Matured at the Oxfordshire distillery in a 30-year-old tawny Port pipe, distilled from a…  More info

The Oxford Artisan Distillery Rye Whisky - The Tawny Pipe
$96.75

The Oxford Artisan Distillery Rye Organic Dry Gin

70cl, 43%

The Oxford Artisan Distillery has given its delicious Organic Dry Gin a snazzy new bottle! It's distilled from local rye grown just 50 miles from the site in handmade, purpose built stills. With a…  More info

The Oxford Artisan Distillery Rye Organic Dry Gin
4
$40.25

The Oxford Artisan Distillery Heritage Corn Whisky - Grain Stories

50cl, 50.4%

The first release in The Oxford Artisan Distillery's Grain Stories series is all about corn! At its heart, this expression features 51% corn, including a mixture of multicoloured flint corn and sweet…  More info

The Oxford Artisan Distillery Heritage Corn Whisky - Grain Stories
$91.64
Price Drop

Oxford Botanic Garden Physic Gin

50cl, 42.1%

Physic Gin is the very first gin ever made for the University of Oxford, produced by Oxford's first craft distillery, The Oxford Artisan Distillery! Founded in 1621 as a physicke (physic) garden for…  More info

Oxford Botanic Garden Physic Gin
$36.67
$35.62

The Oxford Artisan Distillery Pure Rye Spirit - Heritage Grains

70cl, 40%

This wonderful rye spirit comes to us from The Oxford Artisan Distillery (which is in Oxford, surprisingly)! It's distilled from 20% malted rye and 80% unmalted rye in bespoke pot stills, and was…  More info

The Oxford Artisan Distillery Pure Rye Spirit - Heritage Grains
2
$40.19

Ashmolean Dry Gin

70cl, 40%

Here we have a delicious collaboration between two Oxford establishments, the Ashmolean Museum (the University of Oxford's Museum of Art and Archaeology) and The Oxford Artisan Distilery. Ashmolean…  More info

Ashmolean Dry Gin
1
$40.25
Price Drop

The Oxford Artisan Distillery Rye Whisky - Batch 2

70cl, 47.4%

Rye whisky is rather popular these days, and with that, more and more distilleries are producing it outside of America – like Oxford, for example! The Oxford Artisan Distillery has a knack for using…  More info

The Oxford Artisan Distillery Rye Whisky - Batch 2
$96.74
$90.69

The Oxford Artisan Distillery Rye Whisky - Batch 3

70cl, 51.2%

The third batch of The Oxford Artisan Distillery's Rye Whisky once again makes deft use of the ancient heritage rye strains at its heart, along with wheat and even some oats and thistles. Initially,…  More info

The Oxford Artisan Distillery Rye Whisky - Batch 3
$96.74

Ver Viola Gin

50cl, 40%

A wonderfully floral gin from The Oxford Artisan Distillery! The aptly named Ver Viola Gin has been infused with organic butterfly pea flower and rose, so it not only looks the part, but tastes it…  More info

Ver Viola Gin
1
$36.61

The Oxford Artisan Whisky 3 Year Old (That Boutique-y Whisky Company)

50cl, 50%

The Oxford Artisan Distillery (it's in Oxford, we'll have you know) has a penchant for using intriguing grains to make its marvellous whiskies, and That Boutique-y Whisky Company has got its hands on…  More info

The Oxford Artisan Whisky 3 Year Old (That Boutique-y Whisky Company)
$137.50
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The Oxford Artisan Distillery Rye Whisky - Batch 1

70cl, 46.3%

We sold this highly anticipated whisky via a bottle lottery. Why all the fuss? Read more about this approach over on the blog. The Oxford Artisan Distillery has released its very first and very…  More info

The Oxford Artisan Distillery Rye Whisky - Batch 1
3
$96.80

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