Knockeen Hills Irish Poteen

Knockeen Hills Irish Poteens and their Heather and Elderflower London’Cut’ Dry Gins, are the only brands using exclusively Irish Whey Spirit in all stages of their production. Irish Poteen has been produced for several centuries and for nearly the last 300 years has been referred to as Ireland's Moonshine spirit. During the period 1666 until recently, in various forms and times, it has been illegal to sell it in Ireland. In the 15th Century, during the occupation by Cromwell and his troops, English Crown Agents were required to raise taxes to pay for their invasion. They then outlawed Irish domestic produced Irish Poteen, Whiskey and Gin spirit drinks, forcing the people to buy heavily taxed English ones. Where troops found sacks of grain or barley that they decided were intended to be used to produce a mash and subsequently poteen, to compete against Crown Spirits, they imposed heavy fines, troops confiscated farm machinery and frequently burned down the farmers’ houses’. Avoiding any of these tell-tale signs that poteen was being produced, and with it the risk of prosecution/fines/imprisonment, meant farmers and others could work more freely without worry. Therefore they’ commenced making alcohol from whey, (a by-product of cows’ milk,) which proved very successful and smooth. No cow was ever known to have been confiscated by troops, hence its milk became very frequently used in the spirit making process, and our poteens and gins follow that centuries old tradition. In later times the Garda, took a more lenient approach and merely sized the poteen, destroyed the stills, and the producers were fined and sometimes sent to jail!

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