The Yorkshire-based Cooper King Distillery and Spirit of Yorkshire Distillery have announced the launch of a new collaborative release, said to showcase the camaraderie and transparency of the modern whisky industry.

Many Hands (48% ABV) is a Yorkshire blended malt whisky, comprising 16 casks sourced from MB Roland Distillery in Kentucky. Eight casks were filled with Cooper King spirit and eight with Spirit of Yorkshire spirit: 6 dark-fired Bourbon casks, 4 first-fill Bourbon casks, 4 rye whiskey casks and 2 corn whiskey casks.

Back in 2021, the Tasmanian copper pot still at Cooper King Distillery developed a fault and had to be sent away for repairs. The resulting nine-month pause in production threatened to create a significant gap in the distillery’s future stocks of mature whisky – a potentially disastrous situation for the young producer. Chris and Dr Abbie Jaume, founders of Cooper King Distillery, turned to their Yorkshire neighbours at Spirit of Yorkshire Distillery, who were more than happy to help.

At the Spirit of Yorkshire Distillery, spirit was distilled using Cooper King’s own recipe before being transported back to Cooper King Distillery for maturation. There, the spirit was filled into four different cask types and left to mature. Four years later, the whisky is ready. Eight casks containing the original Spirit of Yorkshire spirit have been married with eight casks of Cooper King whisky, matched across the same cask types to create this latest limited-edition release.

Many Hands is said to deliver notes of honeycomb, peach cobbler and blackcurrant leaf on the nose, followed by notes of biscuit, toasted cashews and cracked black pepper on the palate.

Commenting on the release, Dr Abbie Jaume, Co-Founder of Cooper King Distillery, said: “It’s a little-known fact that distilleries have bought and sold spirit between themselves to cover production shortfalls for years. Traditionally, that spirit has been bottled under the purchasing distillery’s own brand, with consumers none the wiser. We saw this as an opportunity to turn a challenging situation into something positive and to build a closer relationship with our nearest distilling neighbours. Many hands make light work. Collaboration has been part of the craft beer industry for years, and it felt high time the whisky industry embraced the same spirit.”

Joe Clark, Whisky Director at Spirit of Yorkshire Distillery, added: “It was an easy decision to help out a neighbouring distillery in need. While it’s unusual to see this kind of collaboration talked about so openly, it doesn’t surprise us. Behind the scenes, the whisky industry is one of the most collegiate and supportive in the world. We think it’s time whisky drinkers saw that side of the industry too.”

Limited to 1,922 bottles, Many Hands is now available from Cooper King Distillery and selected specialist retailers for a RRP of £95.00.

In keeping with the collaborative spirit of the project, £1 from every bottle sold will be donated to the Yorkshire Dales Millennium Trust’s Rural Apprenticeships Programme, helping to develop the skills needed to care for Yorkshire’s landscapes for future generations.