London Daily

Focus on the big picture.
Thursday, Jul 24, 2025

English whisky? A spirits pioneer tries to survive the pandemic and Brexit

English whisky? A spirits pioneer tries to survive the pandemic and Brexit

Daniel Szor is doing something unusual: making whisky in England.

The native New Yorker founded Cotswolds Distillery six years ago after realizing the picturesque area of southern England had an abundance of barley, and tourists who might be looking for a local, premium beverage to sample while on vacation.

"In the beginning, the local village was probably thinking who the hell is this Yank coming in and wanting to make whisky of all things?" Szor told CNN Business.

But Szor was onto something. Despite being overshadowed by huge Scottish operations that pump out millions of liters of whisky a year, as well as Japanese and American imports, there are now 24 distilleries in England trying to carve out a market niche and survive the coronavirus pandemic and trade uncertainty caused by Brexit. (Wales has a handful of craft distillers, too).

The nascent industry has even given rise to Exploring English Whisky, an online organization that gives consumers a place to celebrate their favorite brands.​ ​In October, the group organized a virtual conference that featured 14 distilleries, hosting virtual tastings, discussions and quizzes for an audience of around 400 people.

How to start a distillery


Only local barley is used at Cotswolds Distillery, which makes whisky in what Szor calls the "old fashioned" way. "We've got a bunch of young guys and they have no computers, nothing is automated. They're out there turning valves and regulating things, egg timers beep in the background," he said.



This approach helped win the respect of the Scottish whisky kings north of the border, who Szor thanks for encouraging him to pursue his dream of making his own spirit.

"There's an awful lot of love for what we do because we make whisky in the way it was made in Scotland before whisky got corporate and became a global luxury brand ... when distilling was still a farm activity and distilleries were still small and everything was manual," he said.

Customers like the results, too. Cotswolds Distillery started making both gin and whisky in 2014. According to Szor, his award-winning dry gin was an instant hit. London's department stores began stocking the spirit and customers in the Cotswolds "couldn't get enough," he said.

Making whisky is a longer — and more expensive — process.

But when the first Cotswolds Distillery whisky was mature enough to sell in October 2017, the first 2,000 bottles went to customers who had placed orders while it was still in cask. In spring 2018, Cotswolds Single Malt went on sale in 1,000 bars in the United Kingdom. That summer, Szor secured his first big grocery listing at UK chain Waitrose, he said.

Coronavirus impact


The pandemic has threatened to overwhelm English whisky producers.

In March, when fallout from the pandemic resulted in his business "going over the cliff," Szor predicted a 50% loss in annual revenue compared with the previous year. The tourists stopped coming, tours of the distillery were canceled and production halved. Szor closed both his stores in local villages, and one at the distillery, with staff going on furlough.

But the business stabilized thanks to some timely deals and a surge in online sales, with profits rebounding to track 15% higher than last year, according to Szor. In October, Cotswolds Distillery became the first English whisky to be sold by UK supermarket chain Sainsbury's (JSAIY) and the brand also recently
launched in China.

"We grew quite a bit online and our sales through the [supermarkets] grew quite a bit as well," said Szor.

"We were less focused than a lot of the big companies on [bars and restaurants]. So the closure of those routes to market were less impactful on us, and the fact that people were looking for interesting things and were shopping online, we did okay on that."

Lockdowns may be a "blessing in disguise" for small brands who are catering to new audiences with online tastings, according to Richard Foster, founder of Exploring English Whisky.

"There's a benefit to doing online tastings in that they're less intimidating," he said.

Trade barriers


Being small has other benefits, such as flying under the radar of US tariffs on Irish and Scottish whisky in 2019. There are no such tariffs on whisky made in England, the UK Wine and Spirit Trade Association told CNN Business.

The next threat is Brexit. Business groups and watchdogs have warned that goods could be delayed at the UK border when the Brexit transition period concludes at the end of December, and exports to some markets could face higher tariffs next year. The cost of supplies needed to produce whisky could also increase.



Szor imports glass and botanicals from all over Europe, and has been planning to increase exports from 25% to 50% of sales.

"There's no reason to believe that things are going to be better for us because of Brexit. It can only be worse or the same," said Szor.

Szor considers himself lucky to have seen profits grow this year, but he remains cautious. "I don't believe that we are out of the woods yet, or that the economy is out of the woods yet."

English whisky producers that survive into next year may be poised for more growth, according to Foster.

"People who like whisky get excited about the outer edges of the whisky world, the innovations, the new releases, the new distilleries opening, everyone wants to be involved in that journey from the outset," he said.

"I think as a scene, it's definitely reaching a point at which you can talk about English whisky collectively, rather than where as say five years ago, you'd probably just talked about the distillery and the individual product."

Newsletter

Related Articles

0:00
0:00
Close
Politic is a good business: Barack Obama’s Reported Net Worth Growth, 1990–2025
Thai Civilian Death Toll Rises to 12 in Cambodian Cross-Border Attacks
TSUNAMI: Trump Just Crossed the Rubicon—And There’s No Turning Back
Over 120 Criminal Cases Dismissed in Boston Amid Public Defender Shortage
UN's Top Court Declares Environmental Protection a Legal Obligation Under International Law
"Crazy Thing": OpenAI's Sam Altman Warns Of AI Voice Fraud Crisis In Banking
The Podcaster Who Accidentally Revealed He Earns Over $10 Million a Year
Trump Announces $550 Billion Japanese Investment and New Trade Agreements with Indonesia and the Philippines
US Treasury Secretary Calls for Institutional Review of Federal Reserve Amid AI‑Driven Growth Expectations
UK Government Considers Dropping Demand for Apple Encryption Backdoor
Severe Flooding in South Korea Claims Lives Amid Ongoing Rescue Operations
Japanese Man Discovers Family Connection Through DNA Testing After Decades of Separation
Russia Signals Openness to Ukraine Peace Talks Amid Escalating Drone Warfare
Switzerland Implements Ban on Mammography Screening
Japanese Prime Minister Vows to Stay After Coalition Loses Upper House Majority
Pogacar Extends Dominance with Stage Fifteen Triumph at Tour de France
CEO Resigns Amid Controversy Over Relationship with HR Executive
Man Dies After Being Pulled Into MRI Machine Due to Metal Chain in New York Clinic
NVIDIA Achieves $4 Trillion Valuation Amid AI Demand
US Revokes Visas of Brazilian Corrupted Judges Amid Fake Bolsonaro Investigation
U.S. Congress Approves Rescissions Act Cutting Federal Funding for NPR and PBS
North Korea Restricts Foreign Tourist Access to New Seaside Resort
Brazil's Supreme Court Imposes Radical Restrictions on Former President Bolsonaro
Centrist Criticism of von der Leyen Resurfaces as she Survives EU Confidence Vote
Judge Criticizes DOJ Over Secrecy in Dropping Charges Against Gang Leader
Apple Closes $16.5 Billion Tax Dispute With Ireland
Von der Leyen Faces Setback Over €2 Trillion EU Budget Proposal
UK and Germany Collaborate on Global Military Equipment Sales
Trump Plans Over 10% Tariffs on African and Caribbean Nations
Flying Taxi CEO Reclaims Billionaire Status After Stock Surge
Epstein Files Deepen Republican Party Divide
Zuckerberg Faces $8 Billion Privacy Lawsuit From Meta Shareholders
FIFA Pressured to Rethink World Cup Calendar Due to Climate Change
SpaceX Nears $400 Billion Valuation With New Share Sale
Microsoft, US Lab to Use AI for Faster Nuclear Plant Licensing
Trump Walks Back Talk of Firing Fed Chair Jerome Powell
Zelensky Reshuffles Cabinet to Win Support at Home and in Washington
"Can You Hit Moscow?" Trump Asked Zelensky To Make Putin "Feel The Pain"
Irish Tech Worker Detained 100 days by US Authorities for Overstaying Visa
Dimon Warns on Fed Independence as Trump Administration Eyes Powell’s Succession
Church of England Removes 1991 Sexuality Guidelines from Clergy Selection
Superman Franchise Achieves Success with Latest Release
Hungary's Viktor Orban Rejects Agreements on Illegal Migration
Jeff Bezos Considers Purchasing Condé Nast as a Wedding Gift
Ghislaine Maxwell Says She’s Ready to Testify Before Congress on Epstein’s Criminal Empire
Bal des Pompiers: A Celebration of Community and Firefighter Culture in France
FBI Chief Kash Patel Denies Resignation Speculations Amid Epstein List Controversy
Air India Pilot’s Mental Health Records Under Scrutiny
Google Secures Windsurf AI Coding Team in $2.4 Billion Licence Deal
Jamie Dimon Warns Europe Is Losing Global Competitiveness and Flags Market Complacency
×