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Warenghem

Pioneers of French whisky, Armorik is one of the standout names in the country’s thriving scene and a leading light of the world whisky category. Every drop of Armorik whisky is mashed, fermented, distilled, aged and bottled at the brand’s distillery, where a fruity spirit that reflects terroir is created and presented with natural colour.

But this proudly Breton single malt is a relatively recent chapter of the distillery’s history. It dates back to 1900 when the Warenghem family moved from northern France to the pink granite coast of Lannion, Breton. There Léon Warenghem founded a distillery which initially specialised in the production of fruit and plant liqueurs and creams. Elixir d'Armorique, the inaugural product, was a huge success, kickstarting the business.

In 1967, Paul-Henri, the latest generation of Warenghems, joined forces with Yves Leizour to diversify the range and by 1974 they had moved the distillery from the town centre to the outskirts of Lannion. In the early 80s, Gilles Leizour, a trained pharmacist, succeeded his father and decided to take the big gamble that truly revolutionised the Warenghem Distillery.

That was the creation of the first Breton and French whisky. The WB blend, a recipe of 25% malt whisky and 75% grain whisky, was launched in 1987 and just six years later in 1993 Leizour was commissioning a distillery solely dedicated to whisky, equipped with a pair of copper stills specially designed in Cognac inspired by the kind used in Scotch whisky distilleries.

It wasn’t long until the first Breton single malt whisky followed in 1998, the Armorik. Today its produced using water located 100 metres below the distillery from the natural spring of Rest Avel. It has a very low limestone content, characterised by the granite of the Breton coast. The malted barley for Armorik single malts is sourced from Brittany and France, while the wheat used in blends comes from Brittany and non-GMO, and since 2015 the distillery has been working with organic grains, with every bit of barley from 2020 used in production being certified organic.

Great care is taken at Armorik to ensure the wort is as clear as possible to ensure that the whisky has a highly aromatic and rounded flavour and the mash tun has a perforated base that lets the wort run off while retaining the solid residue, which is given to a local farmer as cattle feed. Fermentation takes between three and four days at our distillery with two strains of yeast employed, one for optimum yield and the second for the numerous esters it creates.

Armorik whisky is double distilled and the distillers make cuts fairly high up in order to keep the majority of the aromas (the most volatile parts of the distillation). The heads and tails, are removed for subsequent redistillation, while the short and squat shape of the spirit still helps obtain a fatty and rounded distillate, despite the high cut-off.

The wood programme includes bourbon casks, oloroso sherry casks, and oak casks from Brittany sourced from the forests of Cranou and Brocéliande. Armorik has a 15-year partnership with the last cooper in Brittany, namely Jean Baptiste Le Floc’h from Douarnenez. These casks age in the unique maritime climate of Brittany’s northern coast, with mild temperatures all year round.

Whisky fans outside of France may not have been familiar with the brand prior to 2010, however, as this was when the distillery began to export its products worldwide, though the business is still a family-run affair. They still work to the same motto they’ve had since 1900, “gwelloc’h bepred”, which means “nothing but excellence” in Breton.

Armorik Classic

70cl, 46%

All the way from Distillerie Warenghem in Brittany, France comes a fab single malt whisky, released as part of the Armorik range. Expect a creamy, vanilla-rich expression here, well-suited to being…  More info

Armorik Classic
£38.94

Armorik Sherry Cask

70cl, 46%

Once upon a time a French whisky would have raised eyebrows, but now we are used to whiskies from all over the shop. Anyway, Armorik is from Brittany, which is cultural and linguistically close to…  More info

Armorik Sherry Cask
1
£45.74
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Armorik Double Maturation Breton Single Malt

70cl, 46%

From the Warenghem Distillery in Brittany, France, comes a complex single malt which is firstly aged in casks made from oak grown in Brittany. Following this, the whisky is moved over to Sherry oak…  More info

Armorik Double Maturation Breton Single Malt
£46.95
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Armorik Yeun Elez Jobic

70cl, 46%

Another brilliant Armorik French single malt from Warenghem Distillery, Yeun Elez Jobic is named after an old swampy area that served as a peat bog until the mid 1900s. As such, this is a smoky…  More info

Armorik Yeun Elez Jobic
£54.95
£52.90

Armorik 10 Year Old

70cl, 46%

Brilliantly fruity French single malt from Warengham Distillery, Armorik 10 Year Old spent its decade of ageing initially in bourbon casks before being moved to oloroso sherry casks for a finishing…  More info

Armorik 10 Year Old
£53.90

Armorik 10 Year Old Dervenn Single Malt

70cl, 46%

This 10-year-old single malt from French whisky pioneers Armorik was aged in oak barrels sourced locally from the last cooper in Brittany, making this a singular product with real provenance.  More info

Armorik 10 Year Old Dervenn Single Malt
£59.95

Armorik 7 Year Old 2011 Single Cask (Master of Malt)

70cl, 59.9%

How's your French? Ours is comme ci comme ça, unlike this French single malt from Armorik which is très bon. Magnifique! Distilled in 2011 and matured in a French oak butt for seven years, a total of…  More info

Armorik 7 Year Old 2011 Single Cask (Master of Malt)
1
£69.95

Armorik 6 Year Old 2015 (UK Exclusive Release 2021)

70cl, 50%

Here's a French single malt released exclusively for the UK. Armorik distilled it back in June 2015 and popped it in oak barrels that previously contained Port before bottling it up in September 2021…  More info

Armorik 6 Year Old 2015 (UK Exclusive Release 2021)
£84.95

Armorik Maître de Chai 2010

70cl, 46%

Here we have the third limited edition release of Warenghem’s Armorik Breton whisky. After distillation in 2010, the single malt was matured in a pair of Oloroso sherry casks. Maître de Chai…  More info

Armorik Maître de Chai 2010
£89

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