Welsh Whisky
Wales can trace the start of its whisky distilling tradition back to the 4th century AD, when a monk called Reaullt Hir is said to have been taught the art of distilling by Greek traders and practised it on Bardsley island off the North Wales coast.
Closer to present day, a small commercial distillery owned and operated by the Williams family opened in 1705 in Pembrokeshire. Evan Williams went on to emigrate to the USA, where he was instrumental in pioneering the American bourbon industry.
In the late 19th century, a whisky distillery operated briefly at Frangoch in North Wales under Robert Willis. Mr Willis’ untimely death in an unfortunate horse and cart accident, however, combined with the Welsh temperance movement, ended the tradition of Welsh distilling. It was only over a century later, in 2000, that this fine tradition continued with the first distillation carried out at The Welsh Whisky Company’s Penderyn Distillery, which remains the sole distillery in Wales today.