Five New Irish Whiskeys For Saint Patrick's Day
With Paddy’s Day celebrations set to take place around the world there has never been a better time to sample some new Irish whiskey. This year we are expecting to see a lot of new releases. Some of these from existing companies but many of them from new enterprises. Here is a list of our favourite new releases so far.
This whiskey came as a bit of a surprise to us, but we are glad to have it. Oloroso Sherry casks have been used to great effect with this whiskey and have added a polished and rounded character and also some flavours of dried fruits, roasted nuts and caramel toffees. The name is a homage to Douglas Hyde, the first president of Ireland. What could be more fitting on Paddy’s Day? Well, maybe Paddy Whiskey itself, but this is a significant step up in quality and is a lot harder to get hold of!
This is a very soft and delicate Irish whiskey with a well-rounded and smooth character. It was always very popular in its previous incarnation as Greenore Single Grain but has since been rebranded to reflect the company’s ambitions for the Kilbeggan brand. Kilbeggan Single Grain is a great choice if you want something that tastes good but is easy to drink.
This was our first collaboration with Knappogue Castle in which we finished some of their great triple distilled malt whiskey in a single red Burgundy barrel from Mongeard-Mugneret. The result is a smooth and fruity styled whiskey with a mouthfilling texture and touches of nuts and coffee. It’s sister whiskey which was matured in a Marsala barrel is also amazing!
Packed with a lot more flavour and depth than many other pot still whiskeys. This was distilled in the year 2000 and has been entirely matured in virgin (new) oak barrels. The new oak adds a lot more spiciness and sweetness giving a huge mouthfeel and glorious flavours of sweet citrus fruits, cloves, boiled sweets and vanilla. Our last Virgin Oak Midleton was very popular and this one is even better!
Straight off the bottling line in time for Paddy’s Day. This is the latest in our very popular Celtic Cask range of single cask whiskeys. Celtic Cask Deich is a double distilled single malt which was made from peated (smoked) barley. It was initially matured for eleven years in an ex-Bourbon cask before a further finishing period of four years in a red wine cask. The wine cask came from Domaine Des Anges in the Ventoux area of the Rhone Valley. It was bottled in February 2015 and just 351 bottles have been released.
Sláinte and happy Paddys Day!
