The Spirit of Manchester Distillery has released more details of its move into malt whisky, including a consumer club to allow enthusiasts to follow the evolution of the spirit from cask to glass.
Drinks Retailing reported the distiller’s whisky plans in May and it has now revealed that the name of the brand will be One Point Six.
The first casks will be filled this month and bottles will be sold commercially from mid-2025.
The Spirit of Manchester’s Founders’ Club will be launched later in the summer, offering whisky buffs a range of benefits at numerous subscription tiers, starting from £30.
These will include distillery tours, glassware, discounts, the member’s name on a plaque in the distillery and samples of the spirit to try at various stages of maturation, before the whisky goes on to the market.
The distiller is using a mix of first-fill bourbon, sherry and shaved, toasted and recharred red wine casks to mature One Point Six.
Master distiller Seb Heeley-Wiggins (pictured) said: “We want to highlight the roadmap that goes into creating a new and exciting whisky and take people on this journey with us.
“It’s relatively rare that a new whisky distillery is launched, so we want to open the process of building a new side of the business, developing and ageing a whisky, and learning about it along the way.”
The One Point Six name is based on 13th century Italian mathematician Leonardo Fibonacci’s golden ratio.
Heeley-Wiggins added: “In nature, Fibonacci’s golden ratio can be found everywhere, from the petals of a flower to the stars in the sky.
“We’ve named our whisky One Point Six because, for us, it represents the perfect balance between natural beauty and human endeavour.
“We are delighted to join the small number of pioneering distilleries who are working with the same goal of putting English whisky on the global map in the next 10 years.
“With English whisky being relatively young, we’re not bound by traditions or heritage, which allows us to use the flavour-forward approach we’ve always followed.
“It’s so exciting to be part of a movement that is making flavour the star of the show, where in other famed regions it may come second to heritage.”
Spirit of Manchester makes Manchester gin, Manchester Spirit vodka, One-Eyed Rebel spiced rum and Forty-Five vermouth.
