In 2010 a fire reportedly came within minutes of burning down its stock reserves, but nobody was hurt.2 Founder and chairman James Nelstrop died in 2014.6,7 In 2019 the company launched Cadus Vaults, which offers other whisky distillers space in one of its warehouses to mature their casks.4 By January 2025 it had opened a fifth warehouse of 12,000 square feet, and could hold 13,000 casks.4
Its water comes from the Breckland Aquifer, a chalk rock directly beneath the distillery that stores groundwater.5,8 Crisps of Fakenham malts its barley, which is grown locally and on Nelstrop family farms in Lincolnshire.8 In 2008 its pot stills were heated by steam running through a heating element.9 In 2019 it used distillers' yeast, and fermentation lasted at least three days, with some batches running four.10 It makes plenty of double-distilled whisky; in an interview before the fifth warehouse, its distiller said they triple distilled about once a year, maybe eight casks.10,11 He took a very high cut, the part of the run kept as spirit, so it reached the spirit safe at 72% rather than 67-68%; casks were filled at 68%.10,11 Its distiller was told the founders tasted spirit samples from Forsyths and chose a lighter style; in 2019 he called it light, fresh and fruity.10 He compared it to a southern, Lowland style; the Lowlands are Scotland's southern whisky region.10 Henderson talked the founders into making peated spirit, and by 2019 it was made in one big run a year.6,10 That malt had at least 50ppm (parts per million) of phenols, the smoky compounds peat adds.6,10 Its single malt ages in barrels on site; in that interview, its distiller said it had 3 warehouses, stored nothing off-site, and bought casks from Jim Beam.1,10 He also said the climate here is warmer, and that casks lose 4-5% here against perhaps 2% in Scotland.1,10
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