Sweden’‘s Box distillery was founded in 2010 near the Ångermanälven River on the High Coast (Höga Kasten) of Sweden, nearly 300 miles from Stockholm, in a former wooden box factory, by Per and Mats de Vahl after a trip to Scotland. The distillery was renamed High Coast following a dispute with the London blending company Compass Box, who claimed the original name could lead to confusion. Directed by master distiller Roger Melander from its early days, it produces whisky using peated malt from Belgium and Scotland and unpeated malt from Sweden from Viking Malt in Hamlstad. The water, which is filtered through layers of sand and coal, is from the Bålsjön lake. The must is clear, inspired by practices in Japan, and distillation slow. Although the generally cool climate helps vapours condense during distillation, the large range of temperatures from one season to the next—from -30°c in winter to 30°C in summer—has a significant impact on the whisky’‘s maturation. The distillery carries out lots of ageing experiments, trialling different types and sizes of casks, different ageing conditions and positions in the warehouse, etc., as well as experiments at every stage of production. Box quickly made a name for itself as one of the most promising micro distilleries of the last 10 years.

Released in 2016, this first edition of the 2nd Step range from Box was at the time the brand’’s peatiest whisky. The malts included are peated to 40, 43 and 45 ppm. 95% of the blend is composed of whiskies aged for four and a half years in bourbon casks and the rest in new American oak casks generously toasted to bring the whisky notes of spice. The whisky was bottled at cask strength, with neither chillfiltration nor artificial colouring. A limited edition of 7,880 bottles.