Meet Dhavall Gandhi, the Willy Wonka of the spirits world
Now you can have your whisky and drink it. With cake-loving, sweet-toothed malt lovers in mind, Lakes Distillery has added a patisserie-influenced single malt to its Whiskymaker’s Editions series, created exclusively for Harvey Nichols.
Inspired by the sensory experience of a Parisian cake shop, the new expression is called Le Goûter, meaning “taste it”.
Lakes distiller Dhavall Gandhi created the spirit and artists Eili-Kaija Kuusniemi illustrated the label for this second launch in The Whiskymaker’s Editions range, following last September’s release of a Colheita Port-cask finished single malt.
Gandhi also makes grapefruit gin and espresso and salted caramel vodkas at Lakes Distillery in Setmurthy near Bassenthwaite lake in Cumbria.
Born in a village near Mumbai, Gandhi is a former corporate financier. “I didn’t want to sit at a board-room studying spreadsheets. Having studied corporate finance and economics, I discovered Kentucky bourbon. I studied distilling and brewing at Heriot Watt before getting a job with Heineken, then McCallan, and now the Lakes.
“My father and grandfather were whisky lovers and I love sherry cask whiskies, so I have always had a nose. I remember sitting on the steps of Maker’s Mark and realising this is what I want to do. Now I make vodka, gin and liqueurs. My wife and I have moved eight times for my dream to come true, from the US to Edinburgh, Elgin and the Lake District, all so I could create my own spirits.”
Working within a 160-year-old farmstead on the banks of the River Derwent, Dhavil calls his approach “holistic”, ensuring every flavour is fully realised. “Whisky-making in its highest form is a dance between science and art, control and creativity. It necessitates being sensitive to how the climate affects the conversation between oak and air and spirit.”
The £99.50 cake whisky from the Lake District is said to offer notes of crème anglaise and jasmine, plus a touch of pear, citrus zest and freshly baked madeleines. It is available to purchase at Harvey Nichols stores in Knightsbridge, Manchester, Leeds, Bristol and Edinburgh, as well as through the website, priced at RRP £99.50.
In April, the Lakes Distillery unveiled a whisky matured in red wine and sherry casks and, last July, its One Orange Wine Cask Finished whisky.
If this has given you a boozy sweet tooth, it’s also worth checking out Kent’s Atom Labs, which makes Jaffa Cake rum, gin and vodka; Yorkshire’s Mrs Cuthbert’s Gin Liqueurs range, which includes Victoria Sponge, Lemon Drizzle, Blueberry Muffin and Black Forest Gateau; and Sipsmith’s Gingerbread and Lemon Drizzle gins.