Monday 26 October 2020
Suppliers
We’ll be going behind the scenes with independent food and drink companies, handpicked from across the Cotswolds by our troupe here at the Old Stocks Inn, to discover more about what they do and their products.
Kicking things off are our friends at The Cotswolds Distillery in Stourton, just one of many jewels in the Cotswolds’ crown!
Tell us about your business and what food and drink lovers can experience when visiting.
Here at the Cotswolds Distillery, we craft a range of spirits and liqueurs, from our award-winning Cotswolds Single Malt Whisky to our Cotswolds Dry Gin. Everything we make is about quality and flavour above all else. When visiting us at the distillery people can expect to learn all about how we craft our spirits and, most importantly, have the chance to sample them! We also have a café where our guests can sit down and relax whilst sipping on a Cotswolds Cloudy G&T and trying something from our delicious, locally-inspired menu.
Where are you based and what’s the best thing about being situated where you are and the local area?
We are based on the outskirts of the beautiful village of Stourton, about a 25 minute drive from Stow-on-the-Wold. The best thing about being situated in the countryside is that we are surrounded by the rolling hills of the Cotswolds – it’s particularly beautiful early in the morning and just as the sun is about to go down.
What makes you unique and what is the company known for?
We are the first full-scale distillery in the Cotswolds and we are known for making delicious, lovingly-crafted spirits. Our people, place and products are what makes us unique. The majority of people who work for us here at the Cotswolds Distillery live locally and we are a very close-knit team. Everyone is extremely passionate about what they do.
Supporting the Cotswolds Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty (AONB) and raising awareness of this beautiful area is at the heart of everything we do. Our founder, Dan Szor, has been on the board of the Cotswolds AONB and we support Caring for the Cotswolds, a local conservation scheme. We are committed to using 100 per cent locally grown barley when making our whisky, and the lavender we use to make our Cotswolds Dry Gin is sourced locally from nearby Snowshill.
Our Cotswolds Single Malt Whisky and Cotswolds Dry Gin have both won numerous awards. When making our whisky, we believe in traditional craftsmanship. Our barley is floor-malted by hand, our fermentation process is unusually long, we only take the purest part of the spirit run during distillation, and we use highly active casks for maturation.
When it comes to making our Cotswolds Dry Gin, we use 10 times the amount of botanicals than most premium gins and do not chill-filter our gin. As a result, our gin forms a beautiful pearlescent cloud when mixed with ice or tonic, known as the Cloudy G&T.
Our production methods take time, but we wouldn’t do it any other way.
What are your bestselling food and/or drink choices?
Our bestselling drinks are most certainly our Cotswolds Dry Gin and Cotswolds Single Malt Whisky. Our new Wildflower Gin range, inspired by the glorious grasslands of the Cotswolds, has also proved very popular!
What makes the Cotswolds such a phenomenal region for food and drink?
We are lucky in that we have charming cafes, cosy pubs and fantastic restaurants in villages and towns throughout the Cotswolds. There is also a wide array of food and drink suppliers which is no surprise given the abundance of fresh, quality ingredients the Cotswolds has to offer. Whether you want to buy a local cheese, wine, mustard or some fresh trout, we have everything on our doorstep and are truly spoilt for choice.
What would you say is the quintessential taste of the Cotswolds?
Perhaps not a certain meal, more a certain moment. Sitting down next to an open fire in a cosy Cotswold pub with good company – we wouldn’t want to be anywhere else.
What does it mean to you to be a part of the Old Stocks Inn’s Foodie Trails?
We are delighted to be part of the Old Stocks Inn’s Foodie Trails. The past few months have been tough on our local businesses, and we are proud to be working alongside some other fantastic food and drink suppliers across the region to help showcase what the Cotswolds has to offer.
Finally, what would you recommend foodie trailers try out when they visit you?
We would recommend foodie trailers trying our Cotswolds Single Malt Whisky and Cotswolds Dry Gin, but also sampling the rest of our delicious range. We have lots to offer! There are certain products which are only available in our three shops in the Cotswolds and on our website, known as our Distillery Exclusive Spirits, and if you’re into drinking whisky, you can even fill your own bottle!