Next up on the 2025 Grand Tour we have England’s northernmost distillery in the form of Ad Gefrin Distillery! Today’s topic is their whisky cream liqueur “Flýte” which, while usually not my cup of tea, did peak my interest this time around!
Bottled at 17% ABV, this little concoction is made using double cream and Ad Gefrin’s flagship whisky “Tácnbora”, which is a blended whisky utilising both Irish and Scottish whiskies for its unique flavour. This does put Flýte in a bit of an odd situation as it’s not really a Scotch, an Irish or an English whisky liqueur, it’s a bit of all of them. Did it take the best parts of its heritage? Let’s take a look!
The smell is, unsurprisingly, full of clotted cream notes, but is complimented by a delicate hum of toffee and, surprisingly, a very minor fruity hint of raisin. The front is very buttery with a brown sugar twist, reminding me of butter icing in some ways, but it has a fruity, floral accent akin to apple blossom to give it a bit of class. The body is richer with its notes of victoria sponge and apricot, but lighter with a taste profile closer to milk than cream. The finish has rich, delicious notes of vanilla bean pods and airy whipped cream, with a subtle pear signature to round it all out.
The dram has a clear flavour theme to me: dairy, vanilla and mild fruits. This is complimented wonderfully with the texture, which can be easy to mess up in a cream liqueur. Often I find them too thick and sickly, however Flýte manages to maintain a mild, velvety smooth profile whilst still being just thick enough to be satisfying without going too far.
I personally love drinking this straight without ice, as I think this is best drunk at just below room temperature and without any dilution. With that being said however, it is particularly nice in richer hot chocolate mixtures (I’m quite partial to this with hazelnut syrup in a hot chocolate)!
Overall I do like this cream liqueur better than many others I’ve tried. Has it taken my top spot for cream liqueurs? Admittedly, no, it hasn’t, however that’s not due to lack of quality. It’s a comfortable second place for me and is more than serviceable in its role, especially in this chilly time of year. I’d certainly encourage you to pick up a bottle, and I’m excited to see if the folks at Ad Gefrin make a new version of this dram when they release their home grown English whiskies!
This post’s recommended song is: “South American Mags” – Jordan Aikin
