Penrock Distillery
About the Distillery
Penrock Distillery is a Cornish distillery that since 2008 has produced small-batch whiskeys and rums with strong inspiration from Tennessee and Kentucky traditions. Founded and run by Sim Daley, Penrock combines American distilling techniques with local ingredients, double pot distillation, and a clear focus on craftsmanship. The result is a range of rums and American-style whiskies, which use both imported molasses and local Westcountry grain.
History
The story begins with founder Sim Daley, who grew up in Looe and early on captained his own trawler. After selling the boat in 1995, he shifted to music, moved to the USA, and over 21 years built a network within instrument making and distillation. Encounters with American distillers such as Sherman Owen and support from people like Jim Harrelson and Steve Cage enabled technical transfer and access to still equipment. Since 2008, Sim has realized his dream in Cornwall: a distillery where one can produce “grain to glass” and blend Tennessee/Kentucky techniques with local ingredients. Penrock has since launched both rum series and their Cornish sour mash whiskey, the former drawing on blackstrap molasses and the latter released as a single-barrel expression.
Raw materials and production
Penrock works with a 'grain to glass' philosophy and prepares, ferments, and distills as much as possible from raw ingredients. The rum is produced from imported blackstrap molasses and double-distilled in copper pot stills. The whiskies, including their bourbon-inspired sour mash expression, use the sour mash method and are also double-distilled. Penrock emphasizes that their Sour Mash releases are never chill-filtered and are released as single-barrel bottles, which requires hand handling and assembly in small batches. The combination of American distilling technique and local grain varieties is a recurring feature of the production.
Maturation and cask types
For their bourbon-style Sour Mash, Penrock uses hand-cut premium virgin white American oak casks, where the whiskey has matured for three years. The rums rest in premium white American oak to achieve their golden character, while the darker rum expressions are described as aged on 'aged oak'. The distillery is on-site, and they practice cask reuse: after sour mash aging, casks are refilled with single malt, and a third use of the casks is experimented with.
Whiskies
Penrock offers both rums and American-inspired whiskies in small batches. On the rum side, there are Silver (white rum), Gold (gold rum), Onyx (dark rum), Spiced Rum, and Resurrection (coffee-oriented distillate), as well as gift packs with a miniatures set. On the whisky side, the standout products are Penrock Platinum, a light, American-style whiskey, and Penrock Sour Mash, a single-barrel sour mash release. The products are mainly double-distilled in copper pot stills, presented in 50 cl bottles for the main products, and emphasize small-scale craft and a batch-based approach.
| Whisky | Type / Series | Alcohol | Age | Cask and Style | Flavor Profile | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Penrock Sour Mash | Sour Mash whiskey (bourbon-style) | 43 % | 3 years | Hand-hewn premium virgin oak casks | Penrock Sour Mash is a single-barrel expression, double-distilled in copper pot stills and aged in hand-hewn premium virgin oak casks for three years. The bottles are hand-numbered with cask- and bottle-numbers; the release is presented as a Cornish tribute to American bourbon tradition. | Limited; Core range; Limited single barrel release; 240 bottles |
| Penrock Platinum | American-style whiskey | 40 % | Penrock Platinum is the distillery’s uncut interpretation of American whiskey, produced using the Bourbon 'sour mash' method and double-distilled in copper pot stills for a light and clean character. | Current; Core range; Core | ||
| Penrock Gold Rum | Gold rum | 40 % | Premium white American oak | A Cornish interpretation of Caribbean gold rum, made from blackstrap molasses, double-distilled in copper pot stills and aged in premium white American oak. | Current; Core range; Core | |
| Penrock Onyx | Dark rum | 40 % | Aged oak casks | Onyx is Penrock’s tribute to the historic Royal Navy framework: double-distilled blackstrap molasses rum with a rich and dark profile, where flavors of caramel and toffee are highlighted. Nose: Caramel, toffee, sweet dark brown sugar and aged oak | Current; Core range; Core | |
| Penrock Silver Rum | White rum | A double-distilled premium white Cornish rum produced from blackstrap molasses in Caribbean tradition; designed for both sipping and cocktails. | Current; Core range; Core | |||
| Penrock Spiced Rum | Spiced rum | 40 % | Spiced Rum is a blend of double-distilled molasses rum with a secret collection of exotic spices from eastern regions, inspired by the British Royal Navy tradition of spicing. | Current; Core range; Core | ||
| Penrock Resurrection | Coffee rum (liqueur-like) | 25 % | Resurrection combines hand-roasted coffee with the distillery’s double-distilled Cornish molasses rum and is offered as a pleasurable, coffee-oriented spirit at 25% ABV. | Current; Core range; Core | ||
| Penrock Gift Pack | Gift Pack (miniatures set) | Gift pack with 5 cl bottles of Resurrection, Spiced, Gold and Silver Rum — a set of miniature samples of the distillery’s rum range. | Current; Core |
The whisky styles and flavor profiles
The portfolio covers a range of flavor profiles: Onyx dark rum explicitly notes caramel, toffee, and sweet dark brown sugar as well as aged oak; Resurrection ties the distillery’s rum to hand-roasted coffee; Spiced Rum is created with a secret blend of exotic spices; and the white rum expressions are described in cocktail contexts as having citrus-like notes. Taken together, it gives the impression of sweet caramel-like elements, warming spice, and coffee notes across selected bottles.
Philosophy and craft
Penrock emphasizes quality, craftsmanship, and a 'grain to glass' approach. The distillery’s methods blend homage to traditional American techniques with room for experimentation, small-batch production, and hand-numbering of single-barrel releases. The use of local Westcountry grains where possible and imported blackstrap molasses for rum underlines a deliberate ingredient policy.
Latest news
Crafting Unforgettable Cocktails with Penrock Distillery’s Premium Rum – 2024-05-16
A blog post presenting cocktails and serving suggestions with Penrock’s premium rum, including variations such as Cornish Daiquiri, Cornish Mai Tai, and an espresso variant with Penrock’s dark rum.