Not sure how many of you are familiar with Copper Rivet Distillery, which produces Masthouse Whisky. I wasn’t until about a year ago, and I was immediately fascinated. Then I tasted a very convincing single cask by Berry Bros & Rudd not much later. Now Masthouse finally makes its debut on these pages, with a review of their Column Malt and Single Malt.
Copper Rivet is an English distillery in Chatham, Kent, which is southeast of London. The first plans to build a distillery stem from some 20 years ago, when the Russell family started toying with the idea of branching out their family business. Once the right venue was found, a now beautifully Victorian Italianate pumping station on the River Medway, things started moving forward more rapidly.
The distillery has been producing whisky since 2017, led by head distiller Abhishek Banik and his encyclopaedic knowledge of fermentation and distillation. His work truly is fascinating and worth reading up on. For example, Master of Malt has dedicated two articles on Copper Rivet. Late last year I interviewed Banik for a Dutch publication, part of which I’ll share below.
The providence of the grains used by Copper Rivet is one of the distillery’s unique selling points. Everything is grown and harvested locally. These grains are the common thread binding together the different spirits produced at Copper Rivet, including gin, vodka and whisky. Which brings us to the distillery’s column still.
Yes, Copper Rivet has a column still. That’s generally not something that enthuses single malt drinkers. We associate column stills with mass produced grain whisky. But Banik insisted on building his own 40-plate column still, enabling him to make his own neutral grain alcohol. “We’ve long been told that vodka should be neutral, that it tastes of nothing. But our vodka has flavour, which comes from the grains. We use a lot of wheat, while the barley adds a creamy, nutty flavour. And rye adds a certain spiciness, but in moderation.”
Banik is a fan of grain whisky. The mash bill he uses for neutral alcohol is also employed when distilling Copper Rivet’s grain whisky. The difference is the distillation strength. Copper Rivet’s neutral alcohol has a strength of 96.4 percent alcohol by volume, while the grain new make is distilled to “only” 94.7 percent.
“Just that small difference has a big impact on the flavour. I like to be able to tell people that our products all use the same base. Yes, it’s more expensive to produce your own grain spirit, about three or four times as much then when we would source it. But that’s only about a pound more at retail. You can explain that to consumers when you tell them it’s all made from local grains and that we have circular economy. Provenance matters.”
Copper Rivet produces malt whisky in both its column still and its pot still (see the reviews below). When it comes to barley, Banik prefers pale ale malt. He believes this adds aromas such as honeysuckle, lavender and hay. The heavy chalk water in Kent helps the yeast to produce fruitier flavours as well. “When we’re doing our brewing, we also wanted to maintain some of the compounds that actually converse into vanillin during fermentation. Those compounds are mainly found in wheat, but there are some found in barley as well. That’s why we try to maintain.
“This is why we have pale ale malt, so that not all of it gets denatured or we didn’t push for the high amount of enzyme coming from the malt either. It’s been malted accordingly so that we maintain the precursors in the malt. Now when it comes to brewing, we start our mashing at 50 degrees Celsius, where typically distilleries will do 67 degrees.
“We do a protein rest to start with. What it does, it creates much more floral notes in our new make. Then we do a temperature profiling, slowly, creating the sugar profiles that yeast will create fruitier products.”
Abishek underpitches the yeast, allowing for a slower fermentation. Primary fermentation takes about three days, while secondary fermentation then continues until a length of seven days. By not stressing the yeast, Banik prevents the yeast from creating sulfur compounds. “It leaves room for fruitier notes. When you’re distilling this wash, you see a lot of tropical fruit notes like papaya, bananas, and actually mango.”
Distillation is slow to promote maximum reflux. The first distillation in the pot still takes 6 to 8 hours. Second distillation as long as 10 to 12 hours. And maturation? Well, only ex-bourbon casks so far. Banik wants to perfect his fruity, bourbon-matured malt whisky before introducing other cask types.
There’s lots more that goes into producing Masthouse Whisky, and if you’re ever lucky enough to speak with Banik, you’ll find out yourself. The attention to detail is nothing shy of admirable, deserving of your attention. Should you come across Masthouse, be sure to try it. This is a new wave whisky if there ever was one.
Masthouse Column Malt ‘Vintage 2018’ (45%, OB, 2021)
Nose: Very malt-forward initially, with notes of chaff and husks, but there’s also an immediate fruitiness. Hints of honeysuckle too, as well as a sliver of fudge, some citrus notes and finally slivers of peach and pear drops. Also just a touch of oak.
Taste: A creamy mouthfeel. Pretty much what you’d expect based on the nose. Very elegant and the American oak has left its imprint. Hints of crème caramel, gentle pear and ripe bananas, as well as some melon.
Finish: Short to medium. Somewhat leafy with a hint of almonds. The fresh fruits are there, but more subdued now.
Masthouse Single Malt ‘Vintage 2017’ (45%, OB, 2020)
Nose: Very crisp and delightfully fruity. Almost like a barley eau de vie, which I won’t complain about. Hints of shortbread, rather pronounced citrus notes, a good amount of melon and fresh birch bark. Also green apples and some candied fruits.
Taste: A creaminess again. We’re kicking off with apple sauce and gentle tropical notes, mostly represented by a mild pineapple flavour. Also a sliver of ginger, notes of fir and white pepper.
Finish: Medium length. A gentle, green bitterness with some potato scones.
Photos: Whiskybase
