The Lakes Distillery has secured a £4.25m investment to support ambitious growth plans.

The distillery, at Setmurthy, near Bassenthwaite, will use the cash from Comhar Capital to help it triple its production to more than one million bottles a year.

Its products, which also include vodka and gin, are growing increasingly popular and its international market is growing quickly.

With its investment, Leeds-based Comhar Capital has acquired a minority share in the business.

The funding will support the distillery's ongoing capital investment programme in its premises, which tor centre and continued growth in maturing whisky stocks.

The Lakes Distillery was established in 2011 under the leadership of Nigel Mills and Paul Currie.

Whiskymaker Dhavall Gandhi, joined the business in 2015 from The Macallan and is developing a strong reputation across the market for its sherry-led house style.

Craig Wilkinson, who established Comhar in 2018 with Neil Armstrong, will join the board of the Lakes Distillery.

Mr Mills, who is also chief executive of the distillery, said: “Our vision is to create a global luxury single malt whisky brand. It’s an ambitious goal and one which means quality is at the heart of everything we do. A sentiment very much shared by Comhar.

“The new investment will help to sustain our ongoing programme of capital investment which, in 2020, will see single malt whisky production treble from 400,000 bottles per annum to 1.2 million, the installation of eight new washbacks to facilitate 24-hour distillation, construction of a new racked warehouse, and support for our aspiration to increase sales in the UK, Europe, Asia and the US.”

Mr Wilkinson added: “We’re really delighted to be working with the team at The Lakes and supporting them to deliver on their global growth ambitions.

“In a relatively short space of time, Nigel and the team have successfully established The Lakes brand in the market and its reputation for quality. The Lakes Distillery is very impressive and a real credit to the team.