How we make money
We take no money from cask brokers or cask investment firms. No advertising, no affiliate arrangements, no lead fees, no sponsored content, no paid placement — under any label.
Why we drew the line there
Cask whisky is not a regulated investment. There is no FCA authorisation behind it, no FSCS protection and no Financial Ombudsman. In 2025, the collapse of a group of connected cask businesses affected thousands of customers and roughly £80m. The Advertising Standards Authority has upheld four rulings against cask firms, most recently in July 2026.
A publisher that takes money from the companies it covers cannot write honestly about any of that. So we don't take the money. It costs us the most lucrative segment in this market — a qualified cask enquiry sells for £30–£56, against roughly £3.50 on an affiliate bottle sale — and we think the trade is worth it.
What we do accept money from
Services with no stake in whether you buy a cask. Every commercial link is labelled where it appears — never only in a footer.
| Category | Why there's no conflict |
|---|---|
| Independent valuation | Valuers who charge you a fee and have no stake in whether you buy or sell. |
| Auction consignment | Auction houses, when you want to sell a bottle or a cask. |
| Bonded storage | Warehouse operators who store goods and do not trade them. |
| Insurance | Specialist insurers for stored spirit and collections. |
| Legal and recovery | Solicitors and claims specialists, for people who believe they were mis-sold. |
| Tours and travel | Distillery experiences and tour booking platforms. |
| Bottle retail and accessories | Retailers and glassware, on ordinary affiliate terms. |
Rules we hold ourselves to
- No company can pay to appear, to rank higher, or to be described more favourably.
- We research and write first. Commercial links are attached afterwards, or not at all.
- Every commercial link is labelled at the point of use.
- Wherever practical we also give an unpaid route to the same outcome.
- No page under
/casksor/companiesmay carry a commercial link to a cask-sale operator. This is enforced by an automated check at build time, not by memory. - Anyone we write about can reply, and corrections are published with a visible changelog.
Categories we will never take money from
- cask-sales
- cask-investment
If you believe we have breached any of this, tell us — get in touchand we will investigate and publish the outcome.