Wild Geese"Registered under the Avalon Group Inc this whiskey has been knocking around invarious forms for a while now. Designed and Marketed by Protégé International Ltd The latest incarnation has a line of of 4 whiskies 3 in square decanter type bottles is both impressive and stylish and smacks of a quality product.""This is a slight rebranding of the Wild Geese line-up especially for the North American market (USA & Canada)""Expression % Distillery Launched Single Malt 43.0 Cooley 2007 Limited Edition Fourth Centennial 43.0 Cooley 2007 Rare Irish 43.0 Cooley 2007 Classic Blend 40.0 Cooley 2007 Blend (Old Green label tall bottle, Cork Top) 43.0 Cooley 2006 * Blend (Older Purple label tall bottle, Screw Top) 40.0 Cooley 2003http://irishwhiskeychaser.webs.com/privatebrands.htm#314042779

"Avalon is a legendary island featured in the Arthurian legend. It first appears in Geoffrey of Monmouth's 1136 account "The History of the Kings of Britain" as the place where King Arthur's sword Excalibur was forged and later where Arthur was taken to recover from his wounds after the Battle of Camlann. Avalon was associated from an early date with mystical practices and people."Avalon (novel), a 1965 novel by Anya Seton"Avalon (1990 film), a film directed by Barry Levinson"Frankie Avalon (born 1940), American actor, singer, and former teen idol"Avalon (Roxy Music album), a 1982 album by British group Roxy Musichttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Avalon

They also make a rum

Distilled at Cooley

" Beam Global purchased Ireland’s only Independent Distillery (at the time), Cooley, in 2011, in a huge deal."They have history of working in whisky that goes back to Walter Teeling foundinga distillery on Marrowbone Lane, Dublin in 1782. Fast forward to John Teeling founding Cooley in 1987.http://www.edinburghwhiskyblog.com/2013/03/18/the-teeling-whiskey-company-a-blend-a-poitin-a-hybrid/

"Double distilled, unpeated single malt and grain whiskey are aged in bourbon casks and then blended together."It received a great review from Jim Murray's 2009 Whiskey Bible! 89.5.'some toffee, yes, but the excellence of the vanilla is there to behold; just a light layering of barley but the gentle citrus caresses with the more exquisite touch...superb arrival on the palate...just love this. The Cooley grain is working

sublimely and dovetails with the malt in the same effortless way wild geese fly in perfect formation. A treat.'

Richard Hennessy In 1745, he enlisted in King Louis XV’s Irish Brigade and discovered the Charente region shortly after the Battle of Fontenoy.In 1756 Captain Hennessy left the army and traveled to Ostend, a place where some of his family lived and where he would begin trading in eaux-de-vie. in 1765, Richard returned to Charente and established his own Maison in Cognachttp://www.hennessy.com/en-ca/news/3903-richard-hennessy-founder-and-visionary

"A blend of Irish malt and grain whisky made by Cooley Distillery and mainly agedin first-fill ex-bourbon barrels with some second-fill also used. How long this whiskey is matured for is not disclosed.

"The Wild Geese brand is owned by Avalon Group Inc. and their Irish whiskey range joins a line-up of third-party distilled spirits which includes Wild Geese Rum. Launched in May 2012, the whiskies are made by Ireland’s Cooley Distillery (now owned by Beam Inc.) using what the brand owners describe as a “unique Extended Double Distillation process”. When asked exactly what this was we weretold, “The distillation is over a longer period and a lower heat”. We’d guess Cooleydistil their own branded whiskies equally as slowly in which case this would hardlybe unique. Sounds distinctly like marking puffery.

The brand name is not an ill-conceived attempt to piggyback on Grey Goose. (At least we hope it’s not). In Irish history the term ‘Wild Geese’ generally refers to Irish soldiers who have left the Ireland to serve as mercenaries in continental European armies, particularly during the 16th, 17th and 18th centuries. The Wild Geese Collection of Irish whiskies in particular celebrates the 1691 ‘Flight of The Wild Geese’ which occurred after the Treaty of Limerick.

During the Williamite War in Ireland (1688–91), Louis XIV gave military and financial support to the Irish Jacobites, including his sending 6,000 French troops.In return, in 1690, Louis demanded that the Irish send 6,000 of their troops to fight in the Nine Years War against the Dutch. Accordingly, five regiments, known as the ‘French Irish Brigade’, were sent. The following year, in 1691, the Irish Jacobites under Patrick Sarsfield surrendered and he signed the Treaty of Limerick. His troops were permitted to leave Ireland for service in the French Army in return for their surrender so 14,000 soldiers and 10,000 women and children left for France. This mass emigration has since become known as the Flight of the Wild Geese.

Some might say this whiskey brand represents a cynical attempt to market to patriotic Irish Americans and indeed in the USA we note that this range of whiskies goes by the longer brand name, “The Wild Geese Irish Soldiers & HeroesIrish Whiskey Collection.” Tellingly the website says, “Wherever you are in the

world, if you are of Irish descent you are part of this story and entitled to call yourself ‘Wild Geese’. (For the record I boast more than a little Irish decent -thanks mum.)

diffordsguide Tasting notes

Sampled on 13/08/2012

Appearance: Clear, mid golden.Aroma: Butterscotch, slightly burnt crème brûlée, vanilla and lemon zest.Taste: Burnt notes continue through to the slightly honey sweet and buttery toffee malty palate with pleasing toasty notes, cleansing citrus zest and a mild spicy oak garnish.Aftertaste: Butterscotch and light cinnamon spice. Easy but perhaps lacking real depth of flavour.http://www.diffordsguide.com/beer-wine-spirits/spirits/whiskey/BWS002960/the-wild-geese-rare-irish

THE WILD GEESE RARE IRISH WHISKEY (Avalon Group)CSPC #13623, 700 mL, $69.95Bright gold whiskey with a fruity corn syrup, spiced nose. Big, smooth with a slightly sweet personality.Elegant cinnamon and nutmeg spice finish replays the initial aromas in the finish. (88)http://www.vintageassessments.com/pn/pn_61014.html

"the first Flight of the Wild Geese took place in 1607, when Hugh O'Neill and RoryO'Donnell, the respective Earls of Tyrone and Tyrconnell set sail from Loch Swilly on Co. Donegal. They never returned to their native land.

The Wild Geese certainly made their presence felt in the world. They fought in every major conflict from the days of Louis XIV to the last world war. They founded four navies and were particularly active in the foundation of the United States, Chile, Peru, and Mexico. They were to a great extent responsible for opening up the western states of America, and were particularly active in the Boer War in South Africa. They fought on both sides in the American Civil War. They fought for the French Revolution. Four were among Washington's principal aides, just as four others were signatories of the American Declaration of Independence. Over sixty fell at the Batttle of the Little Big Horn, whilst Chief Sitting Bull wore the medal of one of the Wild Geese around his neck until he died.

Red Hugh O'Donnell and his brother Rory both made their way to Spain during the early years of the seventeenth century, and their descendants have been prominent in Spanish society ever since. Leopoldo O'Donnell became Prime Minister of Spain in the nineteenth century. Irish family names are prominent in

Spain, including O'Reilly, O'Callaghan, O'Shea, and McMahon. The principal street in Madrid is called Calle O'Donnell.

"uisce beatha is Gaelic ie Irish language"Irish Whiskey Act of 1980"The Irish Whiskey Act, 1950 , is hereby repealed."the Spirits Act, 1880

Irish whiskey must be distilled and aged in the island of IrelandThe contained spirits must be distilled to an alcohol by volume level of less than 94.8% from a yeast-fermented mash of cereal grains (saccharified by the diastase of malt contained therein, with or without other natural diastases) in such a way that the distillate has an aroma and flavour derived from the materials usedThe product must be aged for at least three years in wooden casksIf the spirits comprise a blend of two or more such distillates, the product is referred to as a "blended" Irish whiskeyMost Irish pot still whiskey is distilled three times, four distilleries in Ireland. Currently the distilleries operating in Ireland are: New Midleton Distillery (Jamesons, Powers, Paddy, Midleton, Redbreast, and others), Old Bushmills Distillery (all Bushmills), Cooley Distillery (Connemara, Michael Collins, Tyrconnell, and others) and the reopened Kilbeggan Distillery, which began distilling again in 2007. Irish Distillers' Midleton distillery has been part of the Pernod Ricard conglomeratesince 1988. Bushmills was part of the Irish Distillers group from 1972 until 2005 when it was sold to Diageo. Cooley, which also owns Kilbeggan, agreed in December 2011 to be acquired by Beam Inc.http://www.thewhiskyguide.com/Irish/Irish_Whiskey.html

"saccharification = the process of breaking a complex carbohydrate (as starch) into simple sugars

"Cooley Distillery is an Irish whiskey distillery, located on the Cooley Peninsula in County Louth, converted in 1987 from an older potato alcohol plant by John Teeling."The distillery features both column stills and pot stills for distillation. Unlike mostother Irish whiskeys, which are usually distilled three times, Cooley's products aregenerally distilled twice, as the third distillation is thought to remove some of the flavor components.http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cooley_Distillery

"John Teeling bought the former State owned potato alcohol plant in the Cooley peninsula on Ireland's east coast. This alcohol plant was converted in less than two years into two distilleries - a pot still and a patent still operation. This marked

the first rival to Irish Distillers, who up to this point were the sole producer of Irish whiskey in the world. http://www.shopwiki.co.uk/d/356528/256033635/Tyrconnell-Single-Malt-Irish-Whiskey-40%25-vol-70cl

"Distillery Capacity3 250 000 litres

"Previously it has produced spirits in column stills (e. g. Vodka)http://www.masterofmalt.com/distilleries/cooley-whiskey-distillery/

"In 1966, John Power & Son, John Jameson & Son and the Cork Distillery Company (which owned the Old Midleton distillery) merged to form the Irish Distillers Group. The board of the newly formed company decided to close their existing distilleries and consolidate all production at a new facility. This was built at Midleton as it was the only existing site with room for expansion. In July 1975, production ended at the old distillery and began in the new one. The old distillery has since been turned into a visitors' centre.

"a production capacity of 19 million litres per annum, is the largest in Ireland. Thedistillery boasts three 75,000 litre pot stills, and three column, which are used in combinations of three to produce different types of whiskey.http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/New_Midleton_Distillery

"Although Bushmills will claim to be the oldest Irish whiskey, there can be little doubt that Jameson is the most famous and widespread. Jameson today is distributed in 122 countries worldwide and accounts for the largest share of the global Irish whiskey market, which is estimated at over 22 million bottles per year.

Jameson became part of the new Irish Distillers triumvirate in 1966 when it joined forces with John Power & Son and the Cork Distillery Company. Bushmills joined Irish Distillers in 1972, giving the company a monopoly on the production of Irish whiskey which lasted until the founding of the Cooley distillery in the late 1980s. Today, Jameson is owned by the Pernod Ricard group which took over Irish Distillers in 1988. Bushmills was sold to Diageo in 2005.

Originally distilled at the famous Bow Street distillery in Dublin, since 1975 Jameson has been produced at Midleton, an enormous modern distillery in CountyCork built by Irish Distillers to streamline the production of its many brands. This brought an end to nearly 200 years of Jameson production in Dublin, but the Old Jameson Distillery in Bow Street is now a visitor's centre. Tourists can also visit the Midleton distillery, which is home to many other brands beside Jameson, including Green Spot, Paddy, Power's, Redbreast and Tullamore Dew.

""Sine Metu", meaning "Without Fear"

"By 1820, John Jameson & Son was the second largest distilling company in Ireland. "In 1858, a blight destroyed France's vineyards and consequently supplies of brandy dried up. Traditional brandy drinkers switched to Irish whiskey and Jameson sales soared. By 1890, Ireland had about 90% of the global whisk(e)y export market and the Jameson distillery was making 10% of Ireland's annual whiskey output."Before Prohibition in 1919, Jameson was a best selling whiskey in America. "Up until 1922, Jameson was the most popular whiskey in the British Empire. But after Irish Independence, English tariff barriers priced it out of the market.http://www.thewhiskyexchange.com/B-32-Jameson.aspx

"The Bow Street Distillery, which was established in 1780 John Jameson was originally from Scotland and was related through his wife to the Haigs and Steins,powerful Scottish distilling families. Around 1777, he moved to Ireland, and a fewyears later bought into the Bow Street Distillery. He was initially the General Manager, before taking full ownership and enlarging the distillery in 1805. By 1810 it had been officially renamed to John Jameson & Son."In 1886, the distillery covered upwards of 5 acres.

"Jameson had 6,000 duty paid casks on the premises, which they sold to trusted merchants who would in turn bottle it as a Jameson whiskey. So careful was the distillery about quality control, that any merchant found adulterating a Jameson whiskey was inevitably blacklisted and prosecuted.

"it suffered like all Irish distilleries from the introduction of Scottish blended whiskies, American prohibition and Ireland’s Trade War with Great Britain.

"The Bow Street Distillery became one of the last distilleries in Ireland to close, the stills going cold in 1971, when the production of Jameson whiskey was transferred to Midleton. The millions of bottles of Jameson whiskey produced eachyear from Midleton still embrace the Bow Street, Dublin 7 address on their labels and Jameson has now once again become one of the world's best selling whiskeys, available in over 120 markets and accounting for over 75% of all Irish whiskey sold worldwide.

"What remained of the distillery after 1971 was sold on or dismantled, with the exception of one of the larger buildings, kept on by Irish Distillers as their head office. By the late 1990’s the main distillery complex had become a sorry sight, a fire having ravaged the buildings some years earlier. However, the new Millenniumsaw new life breathed into the old distillery as the site was rebuilt into a complex of apartments, shops and a hotel.http://www.irelandwhiskeytrail.com/?pg=jameson_distillery_bow_street_dublin.php

"JAMESON 18yr

Aged 18yrs in sherry oak, this blend has won multiple awards

JAMESON RAREST VINTAGE RESERVEA blend of 24yr old grain whiskey and pure pot still whiskey, aged in ruby port & bourbon casks http://www.mcmullansirishpub.com/menu_scotchwhiskey.shtml

"Alfred Barnard... visited every working whisky distillery in Great Britain and Ireland from 1885-1887. In all, he visited an incredible 162 distilleries; 129 in Scotland, 29 in Ireland and 4 in England. The result of which was the monumental 500 page The Whisky Distilleries of the United Kingdom,++ About one/week for three years++" Barnard undertook a similar beer tour in 1889-1891 visiting over 110 breweries in Great Britain and Ireland. The end product of this tour was The noted breweries of Great Britain and Ireland,http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alfred_Barnard

The book is available here: http://www.wormtub.com/alfred_barnard.phpPartial http://www.ourscotland.co.uk/ebooks/whiskydistilleries.htmBy Distillery http://www.smwhisky.com.au/catalogue.php?section=tour

"Jameson Irish Whiskey is made from 3 main ingredients: barley, maize and pure Irish water. Our water is sourced from the local Dungourney River, "Malting a proportion of the barley is essential to produce the natural enzymes in the grain which will later be used in the brewing process. We malt our barley in 3 steps; Steeping, Germination and Kilning.

"BrewingMilling

When we’ve got our malted and unmalted barley, we mill the grains to create a coarse flour called grist. By milling the barley and malt into a flour we gain better access to the starch and enzymes which we need later to create alcohol. The proportion of barley to malt is based on a recipe according to the Master Distiller.Mashing

The grist is then mixed with hot water at a temperature of 63C to form a mash. Itis then pumped into a large vessel called the ‘Mash Tun’ and this is where the enzymes breakdown the starch into smaller sugars. We then need to extract this sugary liquid from the mash so we filter the mash through a Mash Filter giving us a hot sweet liquid called wort.Fermentation

The wort is pumped into giant vats called ‘washbacks’ where yeast is added and then the fermentation begins. After 60 hours, the sugar is converted into alcohol. The liquid, now called ‘wash’ contains just 8% alcohol by volume. The ‘wash’ is

now ready for the next stage of the whiskey making process, distillation.

"After the fermentation is complete the wash is then pumped to the first of our 3 copper pot stills; the Wash Still. Alcohol boils at a lower temperature than water so by boiling the wash at around 80°C the alcohol vapours rise out of the neck of the still and through a condenser to return back into a liquid. Under the care of the Master Distiller, this process is repeated two more times: once in the Feints Still and again in the Spirit Still until the alcohol by volume is between 80 and 85.5%.

"Triple Column Still Distillation

Maize, another vital ingredient to Jameson Irish Whiskey is also milled into grist along with malted barley, mashed and fermented to create a beer containing 15%alcohol by volume. The beer is then triple distilled in our tall and sophisticated column stills producing a light, delicate and fragrant spirit that is 94.4% ABV.

"Maturation

After distillation, the 2 styles of spirit are reduced in strength to between 60-70%ABV with pure water and filled into casks. We use three different types of casks; sherry butts, bourbon barrels and port pipes (three’s our lucky number, after all), each of which are maintained by the cooper. The casks are then stored in our vast, dark and aromatic warehouse in Midleton where they rest and mature for the next few years. Each barrel loses about 2% of its volume through evaporationeach year. This is called the Angel’s Share.Marrying & Vatting

The mature whiskeys are then emptied into a huge vat and allowed to marry before being bottled. The alcohol strength is also reduced to 40% alcohol by volume, ready to be enjoyed.

"Jameson Select Reservea high proportion of Irish pot still whiskey and a rare small batch grain whiskey, and left it to mature in flame-charred bourbon barrels. "Tasting CharacteristicsNose: Rich and full, developing into the succulent sweetness of exotic fruits like nectarines, apricots and papayas.Taste: A burst of flavours combines to produce a creamy, luscious taste experience. The special fruity sweetness from the grain remains consistent, while the waves of vanilla, toasted wood and spices roll through from the pot still whiskey and flame charred barrels.Finish: An incredibly long finish with fruit and wood spices lingering in perfect proportion, delivering an extremely rich and smooth taste experience.

"Jameson 18 Year Old Limited Reserve

These 3 beautifully matched whiskeys are matured for at least 18 years in hand selected American bourbon barrels and European oak casks, where they completetheir rite of passage and are finished in first fill bourbon barrels "Tasting CharacteristicsNose: Aromatic oils with a touch of wood, spicy toffee.Taste: Wonderfully mellow and smooth, a mouthful of complex flavour - fudge, toffee, spice, hints of wood and leather, vanilla and a gentle sherry nuttiness.Finish: A long, lingering finish carries the theme of the wood, spice and toffee right through to the end.

"Jameson Rarest Vintage ReserveThe advanced aged whiskeys in this magnificent reserve are brought together with pot still whiskey that has been matured in hand-picked second fill bourbon casks

"Tasting CharacteristicsNose: A real full-bodied aroma. Initially sweet with ripe fruit notes of melon, bananas and dark fleshy plums. The unmistakable pot still spicy character combines to give hints of treacle, cinnamon and liquorice.Taste: A mouthful of flavours. Mellow sweetness and toasted wood are complemented by fruit richness characteristic of the port casks. A touch of creamy dairy fudge and dark chocolate add to the complexity.Finish: A tantalizingly long finish which covers the spectrum from the sweetness of fruit, through the spices to the unmistakable note of barley, where it all began.http://www.jamesonwhiskey.com/en/

What we're drinking costs about $30/oz here in Quebec.

"Both Midleton and Cooley distilleries produce both pot still and grain whiskey, "Styles of Irish Whiskey:Single Malt Irish whiskey is made from 100% malted barley by a single distillery in a pot still.Grain whiskey is particularly light in style. Made from corn or wheat, grain whiskey is produced in column stills.Blended whiskey constitutes 90% all Irish whiskey production. Jameson and Kilbeggan are famous blended Irish whiskies.Pure Pot Still whiskey is a blend of both malted and unmalted barley distilled in a pot still. Pure Pot Still is a style of whiskey unique to Ireland.Potcheen (poteen, poitín) or Irish moonshine distillates don't meet the age requirement to be labeled as Irish whiskey. Similar to American white dog, this is new make of spirit that has seen little to no time in barrel.

"Redbreast is a famous pure pot still whiskey from Midleton.http://cocktails.about.com/od/irishwhiskey/a/about_irishwhiskey.htm

"Today, Irish whiskey is the fourth most popular style of whiskey in the world behind scotch, bourbon and Canadian whiskies. "Queen Elizabeth I (1533-1603) was known to be a fan of Irish whiskey and had stocks of it delivered to her court, the start of making it a fashionable beverage inEngland."Czar Peter the Great of Russia (1672-1725) declared, "Of all the wines of the world, Irish spirit is the best". By 1755, Samuel Johnson had put the word whiskey in his dictionary, commenting, "the Irish sort is particularly distinguished for its pleasant and mild flavour". "A number of factors at the dawn of the 20th Century almost completely destroyed the Irish whiskey industry. The advent of the Coffey still allowed competitors to produce whiskey in a more cost effective manner. The Irish were slow to adopt the Coffey still (a type of continuous still) and clung to pot stills, a less efficient but more flavorful style of still. Additionally, Ireland's War of Independence from 1919-1921 interrupted the distiller's access to overseas markets, and once freedom from England was achieved, the English closed all access to their market. England had been the largest market in the world for Irishwhiskey at that time. Next, the second largest market for Irish whiskey, the United States, closed its markets from 1920-1933 due to Prohibition. Even worse for the Irish whiskey industry was that during the Prohibition era, bootleg whiskeywas often passed off as Irish whiskey, destroying its reputation and turning off anentire generation of Americans to Irish whiskey. Finally, World War 2 destroyed what was left of the Irish whiskey industry. After World War 2, only seven distilleries remained from approximately 160 in 1880. "San Francisco's legendary Buena Vista cafe may have done just that with their famous Irish coffees. Owner Jack Koeppler was served an Irish coffee at the Shannon Airport in 1952 and came home obsessed with recreating this drink at his San Francisco restaurant. With the help of travel writer Stanton Delaplane andthe mayor of San Francisco, he finally recreated this drink successfully. With the Buena Vista serving up to 2000 Irish Coffees a day to tourists from around the country and locals,http://cocktails.about.com/od/irishwhiskey/a/irishwhiskey_history.htm

"Jameson 18 year old Irish whiskey is a great representation of just how good a blended Irish whiskey can be with age. Within the Jameson range, the 18 sits only below Rarest Vintage Reserve and above Jameson, Gold Reserve and 12 year.BouquetOn the nose, there is a pronounced alcohol sting along with warm notes of vanilla, honey, and caramel. With a bit of time, dried lemon peel, green apple andcinnamon emerge.Body and PalateJameson 18 has a big, oily and wonderfully mouth coating body. As it coats the mouth, flavors of caramel, molasses cookies, vanilla, oak, apple pie spice and umami notes appear. This is a complex and well made whiskey and it really shows

on the palate.FinishThe finish on Jameson 18 year is long for a blended Irish whiskey. More oak flavors appear, along with alluring hints of dried fruits and freshly roasted hazelnuts before evaporating off of the tongue, leaving you wanting more and more. This is a very well made blended Irish whiskey http://cocktails.about.com/od/irishwhiskeyreviews/fr/jameson_18yo.htm

"The Old Bushmills Distillery lays claim to being the oldest licensed distillery in the world. James I awarded the distillery its license in 1608."Irish whiskey comes in several forms. There is a single malt whiskey made from 100 percent malted barley distilled in a pot still, and a grain whiskey made from grains distilled in a column still. Grain whiskey is much lighter and more neutral inflavor than single malt whiskey and is almost never bottled as a single grain. It is instead used to blend with single malts to produce a lighter blended whiskey.

Unique to Irish whiskey is pure pot still whiskey (100 percent barley, both malted and unmalted, distilled in a pot still). The green, unmalted barley gives pure pot still whiskey a spicy, uniquely Irish quality. Like single malt, pure pot still is sold alone or blended with grain whiskey. Usually no real distinction is made between blended whiskeys made from single malt or pure pot still.http://www.netplaces.com/bartending/whiskey-amber-waves-of-grain/ireland-whiskey-in-the-jar.htm

"Queen Elizabeth I of England once remarked that her only true Irish friend was whiskey. http://www.netplaces.com/irish-history/family-and-food/whiskey-a-more-potent-beverage.htm

Master Distiller Barry Crockett "My typical working day is largely devoted to evaluating the highest standard. I look carefully at the 'cuts' of alcohol that are distilled and choose the most flavoursome cut. This is the heart of the distillation. Innovation and change are also important and we constantly look at different cutsand blends to create different whiskeys that may be put into casks for maturation. Learning to appreciate the pure, elemental character of whiskey, as I did under the guidance of my father Max, is part of a life-long academy, from which I'm happy to say I'll never finally graduate."Dave Quinn, our Master of Whiskey Science. " "Variety's the spice of my life. Every day tends to be different, but typically it will involve aspects of brand protection, whiskey analysis, whiskey stock management with Billy, research and development plus a number of projects that are ongoing at the moment, like the development of an updated Irish Whiskey Act. Although I'm known as the Master of Whiskey Science, there's also an art to distilling whiskey. It's the combination of the two - science and art - that brings together the mastery of the process withthe mystery of its humble ingredients. It's this indefinable nature that makes a

reserve whiskey far more than the sum of its parts."Master Blender, Billy Leighton, "The top priority is the management of the maturing stocks to make sure that the right type of whiskey will be available at the right age and in the right casks. It's the only way we can confidently and consistently maintain supplies of all the Jameson brands, from the standard Jameson right through to Jameson Rarest Vintage Reserve. Then of course there is the sampling and selection of casks, which is vital, as only the highest standards are acceptable."Ger Buckley Master cooper a...same tools which were made and used ...over 80 years ago. With a stock of more than 850,000 oak caskshttp://www.jamesonwhiskey.com/en/ourpeople

"the old Cork Distilleries Company distillery operated for 150 years, from 1825 until 1975, when the workers clocked off on a Friday in July, to start work in the new Midleton Distillery the following Monday. "the original buildings date back to 1795, built as a mill before being converted for use as a distillery.The water wheel, which once operated all the machinery at the distillery, still turns and operates the cogs and wheels in the Mill Building, where visitors can also admire one of the original steam engines installed in the later half of the 19th century. The Still House is always a tour highlight, the three original pot stills still gleaming like burnished gold. One of these pot stills, installed in 1949, can hold 31,000 gallons (141,000 litres), making it the largest pot still in the world. http://www.irelandwhiskeytrail.com/?pg=jameson_distillery_experience_midleton_cork_ireland.php

"Jameson Irish WhiskeyThe world's best selling Irish Whiskey, selling over 20 million bottles annually. Triple distilled in Midleton, it is a smooth and well balanced whiskey. Almonds, vanilla and orchard fruits on the nose with light sherry notes, marzipan and gentle toasted wood on the palate with a very pleasant dry finish. Matured in ex bourbon and sherry casks.

"Redbreast Single Pot StillA Single Pot Still range of whiskeys from the Midleton Distillery, available as a 12 YO, 15YO and now also as a 12YO Cask Strength edition.This type of whiskey is unique to Ireland and Redbreast is a continuation of the great tradition of pure pot still whiskeys, made from malted and unmalted barley in the traditional pot still method. The regular 12YO is a unique whiskey, full of character, lovely touch of oilyness and fruitcake on the taste and long classy sherry notes on the finish. Regularly wins top awards in International spirits competitions. Very hard to find outside of Ireland with the exception of UK, France and Germany. Small quantitiesexported to USA too. http://www.irelandwhiskeytrail.com/irish_whiskey_brands.php

"Noel Sweeney, the master distiller at Cooley

http://www.irishwhiskeysociety.com/about

http://www.irishwhiskeysociety.com/reference/bibliography

" Midleton DistilleryMidleton Distillery, Midleton, Co Cork Owner Pernod - RicardWeb http://www.irishdistillers.ie/Founded 1974Status Fully OperationalType Pot Still / Grain / Single MaltCapacity (annual) Circa 30 MLA Water Source River DungourneyMalt Source Phenol level in malt N/A Washbacks Material Stainless Steel Wash Stills x 2 Heating

External Heat Exchanger (Non Coil)Volume Circa 60,000 Litres Low Wine Stills x1 Heating External Heat Exchanger (Non Coil)Volume Circa 60,000 Litres Spirit Stills x1Heating

External Heat Exchanger (Non Coil) Volume Circa 60,000 Litres Casks Mainly Bourbon, Sherry & Port + various others in small rotationABV at filling 63.5% ???Main Brands: Jameson, Midleton, Paddy, Powers & Redbreasthttp://www.irishwhiskeysociety.com/irish-distilleries/midleton

" Riverstown (Cooley) Riverstown, Co Louth (Cooley)

Owner Beam IncWeb http://www.beamglobal.com/ Founded 1987 Status Fully OperationalType Malt / Grain Capacity (annual) Circa 2.25 MLA Malt & 2.5 MLA grain Water Source Sliabh na gCloch (mountain on the Cooley Peninsula)Malt Source Phenol level in malt 5ppm Washbacks Material Wash Stills x 1 Heating Indirect Steam (Coil) Volume 16,000 Liters Spirit Stills x 1 Heating Indirect Steam (Coil) Volume 16,000 Liters Casks Mainly ex-Bourbon from Heaven Hill Also Sherry, Port and MaderiaABV at filling 63.5% ??? Main Brands: Connemara, Greenore, Kilbeggan, Locke's, Miller's and Tyrconnellhttp://www.irishwhiskeysociety.com/irish-distilleries/riverstown-cooley

"Vermont has more distilleries than Ireland."in many parts of Ireland they call whiskey “the brown.”"Jameson is more like Scotch, deeper and more complex,"Each of these distilleries makes multiple spirits, both labels they own and on a custom basis. For example, my personal favorite Irish whiskey is Redbreast. Redbreast is owned by Irish Distillers, which owns the Midleton distillery and there it makes Redbreast, Midleton, Paddy, Powers and Jameson, all of which it owns. On the other hand, I sometimes drink Knappogue Castle, which is independent, made to its own standards, sometimes at Cooley and sometimes at Bushmills. Bushmills makes a wide variety of its own labels, while most of the other Irish whiskey you can think of, including Tyrconnell and Connemara, are owned and made by Cooley."Jameson Rarest Vintage Reserve: The top offering ever by Ireland’s most famousdistillery, this blend contains some of the oldest grain and rarest pot still whiskeysavailable, aged up to 23 years and all hand picked. By comparison, the best selling regular Jameson is 12 years old. The extra long maturation creates

complexity, while additional aging in Bourbon casks and Port pipes gives it a rich fruit character and spice. Thanks to the smoothness so associated with Irish whiskey, many drinkers will be surprised to find out high strong the blend is, bottled at 92 proof http://www.forbes.com/sites/larryolmsted/2011/06/09/complete-guide-to-irish-whiskey/

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"Jameson 18 Year Old Limited ReserveThe 18 year old Limited Reserve is a supreme example of the Jameson tradition of maturing whiskey in Spanish sweet oloroso sherry casks.Rich, complex and truly rare - only limited stocks of this exceptional whiskey are available. Each bottle is individually numbered to become a true collectors item over time.'Nose: Soft, rich, juicy: apricot, dried fruits, orange, butterscotch, hazelnut butter.Water brings out sherry, becoming chocolate and bourbon biscuit. Palate: A luscious, oily sweetness with a crisp solidity on the palate, then a burst of dried fruits, spices and citrus fruits. Finish: Rich, soft & honeyed. Comments: I could drink this all day. A classic Irish whiskey. 9/10' Dave Broom, Whisky Magazine

Awards.Double Gold Medal Winner at the San Francisco World Spirits Competition 2009.Gold Medal Winner at the International Spirit Challenge 2009 & 2010.

€125

Jameson Irish WhiskeyJameson Irish Whiskey is the top selling Irish Whiskey in the world!A blend of triple distilled pure pot still whiskey and grain whiskey, Jameson is exceptionally smooth.'truly brilliant; moth-watering delivery and then wave upon wave of diamonh-hardbarley and grain; the odd eclectic layer of something sweetish and honeyed, but this is eye-watering stuff.' 95 Points Jim Murray Whisky Bible 2010.

Awards.Silver Medal Winner San Francisco World Spirits Competition 2009.

Silver Medal Winner International Spirits Challenge 2009 & 2010.

€26.99

Jameson Rarest Vintage Reserve

An exciting new release from the most famous name in Irish whiskey. The VintageReserve is a fantastic blend of well aged grain whiskeys, with bourbon cask and port pipe matured pot still whiskeys. A magnificent fruit rich whiskey that displaysan impressive collage of flavours.Nose: A real full bodied aroma. Initially sweet with ripe fruit notes of melon, bananas and dark fleshy plums. The unmistakable pot still spicy character combines to give hints of treacle, cinnamon and liquorice.Palate: A mouthful of flavours. Mellow sweetness and toasted wood are complimented by fruit richness characteristic of the port casks. A touch of creamydairy fudge and dark chocolate add to the complexity.Finish: A tantalisingly long finish which covers the spectrum from sweetness of fruit, through the spices, to the unmistakable note of the barley where it all began.

Awards.

Gold Medal San Francisco World Spirits Competition 2009.Gold Medal International Spirits Challenge 2009 & 2010.

€369.99 inc tax

Jameson Select Reserve Small Batch

A special bottling of Jameson, blended from grain and pot still whiskeys and aged in a combination of Oloroso Sherry and Bourbon casks.Aromas:Intensely fruity with characters of apricot, kumquat, and fruit cake. A hint of bitter, dark chocolate and truffles.Flavours:Spice and dried fruits, mixed peel, apricots, marshmallow and burnt caramel. Thepalate ends with a spicy, bitter chocolate finish.

€41.99 inc tax

The Wild Geese Rare Blend Irish Whiskey

The Wild Geese Rare is distilled by Cooley Distillery for the Avalon Group. Double distilled, unpeated single malt and grain whiskey are aged in bourbon casks and then blended together.It received a great review from Jim Murray's 2009 Whiskey Bible! 89.5.

'some toffee, yes, but the excellence of the vanilla is there to behold; just a light layering of barley but the gentle citrus caresses with the more exquisite touch...superb arrival on the palate...just love this. The Cooley grain is working sublimely and dovetails with the malt in the same effortless way wild geese fly in perfect formation. A treat.'

€52.99 inc tax

Redbreast 12 Year Old Pure Pot Still Irish Whiskey

A 100% heavy pot still whiskey with a high sherry ageing percentage. One of our all time favourite Irish Whiskeys.'Stupendous nose....just a sip is enough to fill your mouth with a multi-layered attack of malt and pepper plus a few sherry notes with the pot still arriving on the2nd wave and refusing to budge...this is a marvellous whiskey' Jim Murray A Taste of Irish whiskey.Redbreast was a brand name for Jameson's pure Irish pot still, bottled in bond by Gilbeys. First made in 1939 with Jameson filling Gilbey's own casks. Two sherry casks were used for each bourbon cask. The brand died off with the closure of Jamesons distillery but was recently relaunched and is a huge favourite with both whiskey drinkers and connoisseurs. Really deserves to be marketed worldwide!

Awards.Irish Whiskey of the Year 2010 - Jim Murray's Whisky Bible.

€46.99 inc tax

http://www.celticwhiskeyshop.com

"Brian Quinn, the manager of Beam/Cooley's Kilbeggan distillery, grew up in the north (Co. Tyrone). He recalls that in Belfast years ago you could spot the Catholic and Protestant workmen in the pubs on Friday evening by what they ordered. Protestants would order a half-one (a glass) of Bushmills, a bottle or glass or Tennent's beer (made in Belfast) and Gallagher cigarettes. Catholics would order a half-one of Powers, a Guinness and a pack of Players cigarettes -- all made in Dublin at the time. It was about geography, not ideology.

In fact, one of the most iconic of "Catholic" brands had a long history being staunchly "Protestant." In his book, A Bottle of Guinness Please, author David Hughes writes that until 1939 any Guinness employee intending to marry a Catholic had to offer his resignation. That was as much class-based as it was religious bigotry at the time.

Eventually, the fact that the "Catholic" brands produced in the Republic of Ireland were from Protestant-owned companies didn't matter very much. It mattered more that they were Irish. Both Bushmills and Jameson were owned by the same

Irish company for 15 years in the 70s and 80s. Today, the British drinks conglomerate Diageo owns Bushmills and Guinness and the French spirits giant Pernod-Ricard owns Jameson, Powers, Paddy and other brands. But that doesn't make those brands any less Irish.

"The Catholic-Protestant whiskey myth has endured primarily in Americahttp://irishwhiskeyblog.com/

Jameson 2009 Rarest Vintage Reserve"Nose: Rich, creamy vanilla, and some sweet brown spices (cardamom, cinnamon, all-spice). A cool melange of fruit - pear, sauteed apples, bananas, andtropical fruits (melons, too). There's a sweet marshmallow quality, probably from the rising vanilla. There is some wood in it, providing a good base. With more time, a bit of cocoa, toffee, and orange in the background. Slightly sweet rice pudding.

Palate: Soft and a little silky on entry. Hrm. Surprising bite from the wood -- bitter with a touch of dryness. A pinch of pepper serving up the alcoholic bite. Thewood has vanilla and slowly yields to the fruit. The mid-palate brings a good transition to the fruit. Mango, apricot, sweet pears, bananas, apples, and more "melon." Very fruity, but not a bomb, and the sweet creaminess of the vanilla reminds me of a rich milkshake.

Finish: More of the same, really. Medium-length finish. Never too sweet or fruit, just a real pleaser. The wood came out a bit strong on the palate, but it's a minor gripe.http://www.connosr.com/reviews/jameson/2009-rarest-vintage-reserve/top-notch-irish-whiskey/

"Jameson 2009 Rarest Vintage ReserveThis is a review of a bar sample from bottle # 54673 of Jameson 2009 Rarest Vintage Reserve. The sampled bottle was 70% full.

Nose: very refined, cognac-like flavours, strong vanilla, and some strong hints of chocolate and toffee. Citrus is more in the background in the nose. This also has some strong similarities to an excellent old bourbon. This is a first-rate whiskey nose

Palate: big flavours immediately, including a pot still citrus which sparkles with vitality, sweet and sour in the best way. Full-tasting, with lots of oak and vanilla. The chocolate and toffee from the nose are present also on the palate. These are very attractive flavours. Top notch

Finish: continues the beautiful flavours moderately long, with slight bitterness/sourness at the end

Balance: wonderful whiskey. Only the finish left a little bit to be desired. Jameson Rarest Vintage Reserve whiskeys are very expensive but quite delicious. This is the sort of whiskey that makes you really sit up and take notice that you are drinking something special http://www.connosr.com/reviews/jameson/jameson-2009-rarest-vintage-reserve/aristocrat/

"Jameson 18 Year oldNose: vanilla, hint of confectioner's sugar, light lemon-citrus; not too much intensity

Taste: lots more flavour in the mouth, especially much more citrus, than in the nose; substantial toffee and vanilla, with some wine notes becoming noticeable inthe mouth

Finish: all the flavours stay strong for a relatively long finish. Nice, but heavy on the toffee, and the oak seems a little tired

Balance: the parts fit together well, except that I would have preferred a strongernose. Bar samples were used for this review, so I would also hope to later taste a newly opened bottle for contrast, to see whether oxidation changed the original flavours very much in the samples reviewed

Bottom line for me: the wood tastes tired to me here, and so I prefer the Jameson 12 yo Special Reserve to this Jameson 18 yo http://www.connosr.com/reviews/jameson/jameson-18-year-old/vanilla-and-old-oak/

"Jameson 18 Year oldNose: Higher pitch and more floral than the small pot reserve. The vanilla is rather more prominent here, and in a very buttery rich whipped cream/airy ice cream way. The base aroma is honey on a cool fruit salad. Pear, peach, and other fruits with white meat. Pinch of cinnamon and anise, and very refreshing.

Palate: Oooh, citrusy and spicy! This is going somewhere new and exciting. I really like how this kicks out. Pepper and cinnamon on the fruit simmering in honey, vanilla, and cloves. Oils from pressed violets (it does taste 'purple,' which, Homer Simpson argues, IS a fruit.) Creamy. Fruit pie a la mode with almonds.

Finish: Not the strongest or longest, but very heavy on the same general flavors as the small pot reserve. There's more wood, spice, and honey in thi sone. Very tasty, though I probably prefer the SPR. Both, though, are clearly cut from the same cloth. I half think that this could be a bit richer, but I don't think that the ABV is the issue. Who am I kidding? This is lots of fun! I'm looking forward to trying a Vintage Reserve at some point. This one settles in nicely B/B+ (86)

First time in a long time that I really tinkered with Jameson, and I really hope that I don't wait so long until I do again!http://www.connosr.com/reviews/jameson/jameson-18-year-old/creamy-rich-fruit/

"JamesonNose is sweet with citrus, apples, spices, specifically hints of cinnamon and nutmeg, some grassy notes along with oak. [Taste] Apples, pears, oak, some spices and barley. Finish is short with pears and apples and that chemical flavor. http://www.connosr.com/reviews/jameson/jameson/24-days-of-christmas-day-3/

"Jameson"Nose: delicate. Metallic, peppery, slightly sweet and fruity. Hints of apricot and caramel. Orange zest.Taste: smooth and silky, light- to medium-bodied, with a slight peppery bite. Citrus flavours dance around amid the coppery tones. Better than I was expecting!Finish: fades on a bitter note.Balance: for those who are looking for something smooth, it hardly gets smootherthan this. The taste is better than I recall, though.http://www.connosr.com/reviews/jameson/jameson/light-and-smooth/

"JamesonNose: sharp unmalted barley with an edge of citrus, licorice, early-moderate intensity of wood flavours in the backgroundTaste: strong citrus, licorice; sweet and tart, sharp barley. Wood flavours are more in the background. The licorice may be light or heavy, and in 4 of 7 sampleshad unpleasant tinges of keroseneFinish: long finish with all of the flavours holding upBalance: I never know what I am going to get when I sample standard Jameson. I have had samples from two different bottles which I liked very much and would rate at 87, four others which had the heavy kerosene-licorice which I hated, and would rate at 65, and, most recently, one right in the middle, pleasant, but not asgood as the first two, which I rate at 82. I average these out to settle on about 74. http://www.connosr.com/reviews/jameson/jameson/moveable-feast/

"Jameson Select Reserve Small BatchNose: Cinnamon, vanilla (light), and stewed soft fruits - mainly pear, white peaches, some apricot, and sweet melon. Red apple and some real banana* are out there in a creamy base. Rich and soft pie crust. It's light and creamy, and lotsof finesse.

Palate: Soft and light on entry. We get some sweet wood, and it's a good thing. The fruit stew and pears return, but there's more brown spice, which is also moreprominent than it was on the nose. Cinnamon, cardamom, and all-spice: the spices of sweet baking, and it's no wonder because this is like a light and creamy apple and pear crumble, having almost just cooled off, with a dollop of rich whipped cream on it. Yeah, it's got a sort of delicious thing going on here.Finish: A bit short, but thoroughly enjoyable. Mainly the wood, vanilla, and pear remain. Some spice remains, but it's very subdued. On the whole, the triple distillation lends a certain finesse, but also takes out some of the heft and length.B+ 87/88*- Generally, I don't like banana flavors or aromas in my spirits because they are always closer to banana flavoring, that artificial creation that I can't stand and don't enjoy in any food stuff (ask about banana flavored milk). Here, though, it's soft and subtle ripe banana - not the artificial stuff - and it works so well.http://www.connosr.com/reviews/jameson/select-reserve-small-batch/fantastic-fruit-crumble/

"Redbreast 12 Year oldNose: Resinous sherry residue and lots of vanilla. Coconut and an almost grain-like sweetness. The fruit's there, but not over the top. Baked pears and apples, incardamom infused whipped cream. Slightly sharp point in it somewhere between green apple and lemon. Keeps it rather fresh. Tannins?

Palate: Entry is really nice. This is cask strength? Honey, oatmealy, and vanilla, though the mid-palate falls apart with bitter wood. Definitely wood. The vanilla is rich and creamy, but the wood is too much for me.

Finish: The essence of the nose is still in there, but my palate is loaded with the wood, which subsides a little with time. Water helped and brought out more of the fruit, but it was a bit one-dimensional. http://www.connosr.com/reviews/redbreast/redbreast-12-year-old/meh/

"Redbreast 12 Year oldNose: Wow, like banana cream, nutmeg, hazelnut, caramel... Nose: Dried fruits and spices; vanilla, raisins, apricot (dried), ginger, almondNose: All that's sweet, creamy, and syrupy. Honey, caramel, vanilla, marshmallows, nougat, brown sugar...you name it, it's here. Yet there's also wonderful balance with some sour and bitter notes that add a deep richness and keep things from being too sticky-sweet. Marvelous.Nose: delicious very intense intoxicating vanilla with other light wood flavours, some barley-style citrus, and other malted and unmalted barley flavours. A bit floral with a hint of roses and carnations.Nose: lots of vanilla, light citrus from tart barley, high pitched wood flavours, sweet but understated in its sweetnessNose: Sweet and spicy Very rich thick vanilla, golden syrup. Some rye notes too

and Tangerines. Nose: I could just keep my nose in that glass and be content with it. It is a big smell: fruity and spicy, with vanilla in the background. It smells of comfort and warmth.The nose on the Redbreast 12 year-old has notes of sour apples, vanilla, white wine, permanent marker, banana custard, and pencil shavings, with hints of butterscotch and confectioner’s sugar. Nose: Sweet malt, marshmallows, lemon meringue, pie crusts, plenty of vanilla. Soft spoken and gentle.Nose: Big hit of toffee, green fruits and wood. Slightly coffee-ish. Nose: Clean and pleasant. Like falling into a pile of freshly-cut alfalfa hay. The Nose: A wonderful heat, ripe orange, a little baked fruit...apple cobbler maybe, vanilla and caramel. I might be imagining a faint whiff of sweet pipe smoke as well. The nose is a true fruit basket: a mixture of pear, banana and apricots, suffused with honey and an overdose of vanilla. You can even taste a little crispy read pepper in the background.Nose: clean and slightly sweetNose: creamy and fruity. Pear, banana and peach, with a layer of sweet honey. A bit of marzipan. Very rich vanilla pudding. Fresh cake and hints of sherry. Slightly waxy. Some red pepper in the distance.

Palate: Wow, this is great! Easy, approachable, something you could easily enjoy as a desert Whiskey if you were looking for something sweet. I found bisquit, caramel, more orchard fruits and banana, and an awesome maltiness comes through... easy, light yet sweet, and entirely enjoyable. Palette: Starts sweet and fruity with a slight tartness; some malt, fall harvest fruits, vanilla. Then a bit of pepper and warmth with a non-resiny bittnerness.Palate: Something to please every taste bud. Exactly what the nose led me to believe. Some hints of bourbon without the peppery bitterness. A touch of nuttiness (almonds?), a pinch of salt, and a dry finish keep the sweetness in check. As balanced as a ballet dancer on a tightrope.Taste: all of the nose flavurs translate well onto the palate. This is sweeter on the palate than in the nose, and also more so now that the bottle has oxidised a goodbit. The tart lemon-tasting unmalted "pot still" barley component gives a nice edgePalate: Spicy heaven then off to sweeter sherry. Down to cocoa powder. Nuts and toffee, some cake too, the spongy type, with hints of citrus inside. Taste: Creamy! That's the first thought as it hits the tongue and sloshes through the mouth. Unlike the nose, there's no big tastes at first, but the sweet spiciness of cinnamon starts to tingle the tongue as the whiskey warms.The palate is oily, with a sweetness that turns to mild astringency. It begins with vanilla and becomes slightly chalky before a touch of dry, white wine enters the mix. Then notes of menthol and plums appear. The finish is beautifully tropical, ripe with pineapple and mango. Taste: Dry and tart arrival. Quite different from the nose. Lemons, barley, and a

gentle sweetness like whipped cream. Light as a feather.On the palate, the malt sugar dukes it out with the wood in the opening bars. Then the cherry and the cherry stones appears followed by vanilla and dried fruits.The Palate: Great, smooth, viscous mouth-feel. A faint wisp of wet stone...then, strength. A baked sweetness and malt notes fly everywhere doing their sharp rye imitation again only to swell into a huge, rich peppery mid-palate blow-up, repletewith vanilla, burnt sugar and a faint touch of fruit.The body is oily and the whisky remains very fruity on the palate, primarily apricots and a little bit of coconut.Mouth: oily mouth-feel, fruity again (cassis, strawberry). Coconut with peach. Gingery notes as well.

Finish: Smooth, lovely, more fruit and malt... that malt is fantastic. Finish: Fading mild spice leaves a relatively long but gentle breads and maybe a little nutty.Finish: rich, sharp, and rather long finish, richer still and longer still with some oxidation Finish: Bitter sweet,Double espresso with toffee going a long way.Finish: The spiciness and fruitiness strike first, then are replaced by vanilla from the oak, before it too gives way to a warmth that goes on and on. It's a very comforting finish.Finish: Some meringue cookies with soft vanilla and malt.The Finish: Long and strong, that peppery-ness dances on the tongue while all the other flavors march past in a jumbled parade.The finish is somewhat spicy, but the pears and honey dominate, accompanied bysome nutmeg.Finish: growing spicier with hints of liquorice. Pears and honey. Quite some nutmeg, and a slightly winey aftertaste

http://www.connosr.com/reviews/redbreast/redbreast-12-year-old/desert/http://www.connosr.com/reviews/redbreast/redbreast-12-year-old/great-irish-whiskey/http://www.connosr.com/reviews/redbreast/redbreast-12-year-old/true-strength-lies-in-gentleness/http://www.connosr.com/reviews/redbreast/redbreast-12-year-old/cheshire-cat/http://www.connosr.com/reviews/redbreast/redbreast-12-year-old/best-irish-out-there-period/http://www.connosr.com/reviews/redbreast/redbreast-12-year-old/creamy-spicy-and-comforting/http://www.connosr.com/reviews/redbreast/redbreast-12-year-old/a-pure-pot-gem/http://www.connosr.com/reviews/redbreast/redbreast-12-year-old/sweet-and-easy/

http://www.connosr.com/reviews/redbreast/redbreast-12-year-old/another-irish-hit/http://www.connosr.com/reviews/redbreast/redbreast-12-year-old/if-the-english-had-invented-whisky-the-irish-would/http://www.connosr.com/reviews/redbreast/redbreast-12-year-old/pure-pot-still/http://www.connosr.com/reviews/redbreast/redbreast-12-year-old/fruit-basket/http://www.connosr.com/reviews/redbreast/redbreast-12-year-old/straight-foward-character-lacking-whiskey/http://www.connosr.com/reviews/redbreast/redbreast-12-year-old/very-attractive/

Phase shift upon total internal reflectionhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Total_internal_reflectionAs light passes the border between media, depending upon the relative refractive indices of the two media, the light will either be refracted to a lesser angle, or a greater one. These angles are measured with respect to the normal line, represented perpendicular to the boundary. In the case of light traveling from air into water, light would be refracted towards the normal line, because the light is slowed down in water; light traveling from water to air would refract away from the normal line.http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Snell%27s_lawhttp://spie.org/Documents/Publications/00%20STEP%20Module%2003.pdf

LCBO PricesRedbreast $ 54.95 Jameson 18 Years Old Master Selection Irish Whiskey $ 110.45 Jameson Select Reserve $ 49.95 Jameson Irish Whiskey $ 32.45

Jameson blends column still spirit with Single pot still whiskey, a combination of malted barley with unmalted or "green" barley distilled in a pot still.Aged in sherry butts [7/8s full with flora), bourbon barrels and port pipes (very similar to how bourbon is aged)

John Jameson 7 Year Old / Bot.1940s75cl / 43.5%An old bottle of Jameson's whiskey which was bottled sometime in the 1940s for export to the US. This whiskey has been aged for a minimum of 7 years and has been bottled at a rather interesting strength of 87 proof (43.5%). £899.00 Inc. VAThttp://www.thewhiskyexchange.com/B-32-Jameson.aspx

Jameson sales have increased 750 percent since 1988, the year Irish Distillers was acquired by French drinks giant Pernod Ricard, according to the Irish

Independent.4 million cases of Jameson were sold in 2012http://www.irishcentral.com/news/Jameson-Irish-whiskey-the-worlds-fastest-growing-drink-brand-161772195.html

“We are delighted and proud to have reached the four million cases milestone. Tothink in 1988, when Irish Distillers joined Pernod Ricard, Jameson sold just 466,000 cases globally, with Ireland as its main market... To have reached the four million cases milestone, which equates to over 1.3 billion glasses of Jameson consumedthe distillery in Midleton; the bottling plant at Fox and Geese in Dublin, our Visitors Centres and our head office.

JamesonSelect ReserveRich Pot Still whiskey and a rare small batch grain whiskey, matured in flame-charred black barrels for a rich and luxurious taste.

JamesonRarest Vintage ReserveThe ultimate expression of Jameson, crafted from the oldest and rarest whiskeys of the Distillery, non-chilled filtered, with an amount of 46% ABV.http://pernod-ricard.com/405/brands/see-all-brands/strategic-brands/jameson

"Jameson Rarest Vintage Reserve (JRVR) 2007. How rare? A mere 1,000 of which will be sold in the U.S."Irish dries its barley with hot air, not smoky, open fires, hence the lack of much smoky character in Irish. Irish uses some unmalted barley in its mix, too. Irish is also distilled three times (Bourbon is distilled once, Scotch twice), which removes much of the heavy, oily notes from the spirit. And finally, Irish Whiskey is matured in multiple types of wood casks instead of just one (though Bourbon barrels are the most common)"Jameson Rarest Vintage Reserve 2007 – The secret sauce? Whiskeys aged 20 to 23 years are, in part, laid down in old Port casks, a deal Jameson brokered with Sandeman decades ago and is now making its first appearance on the market. It’s a heavenly concoction that makes me wonder why more whiskey makers don’t turn to Port barrels. The mix is incredible, with that raisiny, plumlike flavor in the mix, plus sugary, cinnamon, and chocolate notes. (I strained to catch the banana that Monks said was present, but it eluded me.)http://www.drinkhacker.com/2008/03/03/tasting-report-jameson-rare-and-reserve-irish-whiskies/

"The Wild Geese Irish Soldiers & Heroes Rare Irish Whiskey – A considerably smoother whiskey, with smoky notes and a big caramel body. Also hot on the finish, but with spicy layers that mitigate that considerably. 86 proof. A- / $50 http://www.drinkhacker.com/2009/10/31/review-the-wild-geese-irish-soldiers-heroes-irish-whiskeys/

"Jameson 18 Year OldThe nose and taste are incredibly well balanced, with that unique Irish oiliness ever present, and I’ve always been weak for a toffee/vanilla finish – which it has. That said, though, I do have to say that it is a bit on the pricey side. Going for between $95-115 it’s not cheap, especially considering that you can pick up a bottle of the Scottish blended whisky Whyte & Mackay 22 Year old – Supreme for $80, without sacrificing the happiness of your taste buds. That said, if you’re aftera more refined version of the 12 year old Jameson, you won’t be disappointed, but in my opinion you get better value for money with the 12 year old special reserve, at under half the price.Eye: Amber, darkNose: Citrus, overripe autumn fruit, honey, fudge and mildly spicy, and it must besaid that they all comes together beautifully.Taste: Very smooth indeed, with hints of leather, vanilla fudge, nuts – and there isno hiding that it has spent some time in a sherry cask; overall very well balanced with a nice, rounded, sweet aftertaste that lingers pleasantly in your mouth.http://www.whiskycritic.com/jameson-18-year-old

"Redbreast 12 Year OldA clean and welcoming nose, it presents a unique fruit basket of banana, peach, apricot, pear and something exotic (perhaps passion fruit) as well as vanilla and caramel. It may be that this all sounds a bit too sweet and sickly, but let me assure you that such is not the case. On the palate it is quite oily and again there’s a beautiful combination of fruity flavors ranging from peach to strawberry, but there is also a spicy element and hints of ginger, licorice and nutmeg. The aftertaste is peppery at first, but soon turns into burnt brown sugar.In some ways, it quite reminds me of the fabulous Rittenhouse Straight Rye. At a mere $45, this is definitely one to add to your wish or shopping list. Well done, Ireland.Color: Pale gold, Ray of summer sun through a countryside windowNose: A blissful fruit explosion; banana, apricot, peach, pear, perhaps passion fruit, vanilla and caramel.Taste: Oily, fruity (as above, but also strawberry), spice, ginger, licorice and nutmeg. Aftertaste of initial pepper, then burnt brown sugar.http://www.whiskycritic.com/redbreast-12-year-old

Waterford Crystal

"While in Russia, the most popular type of whisky by far was Irish Whiskey

"IRISH WHISKEY - KEY FACTSIt is thought that distillation technology reached medieval Europe around the 12thcentury, with Ireland & Germany being the first countries where distilled spirits became widely available to the populace. However, some sources claim that Irish monks were distilling spirits in the 6th century.

The continuous still was perfected and patented by an Irishman, former Customs & Excise official Aeneas Coffey, which is why it is also known as a ‘patent’ or ‘Coffey’ still.Coffey had retired from his position as Inspector General of Excise in Ireland in 1824 to work on perfecting the technology. His Coffey still was patented in 1831.Irish (and American) whisky added the ‘e’ to become ‘whiskey’ in the late 19th century to distinguish themselves from Scotch whisky - which was suffering from a reputation for very low quality due to the flood of inferior Coffey still Scotch thatwas being produced at the time.As well as Scottish and Irish grain whisk(e)y, nowadays the Coffey still is also used for the production of vodka, gin, bourbon and most rums.All the Irish whiskey currently available is produced at just three distilleries: Cooley, Midleton and Bushmills. However, Cooley recommenced production at Locke’s distillery (now renamed Kilbeggan) in 2007. Kilbeggan is the oldest licensed distillery in the world, having been established in 1757.Bushmills is the only distillery in Northern Ireland. Cooley and Midleton distilleriesare in the Republic of Ireland.It is a myth that all Irish malt whiskies are triple-distilled. In fact, the only available triple-distilled Irish single malt whiskies are from Bushmills. The vast majority of Irish malt whiskey brands are distilled at Cooley, and all of them are double-distilled.It is also no longer true that all Irish whiskey is unpeated, as the Cooley distillery has been producing peated whiskeys in Ireland for some time.

Types of Irish Whiskey

Pure Pot Still Irish WhiskeyPure pot still is the only style of whiskey that is exclusively made in Ireland.Confusingly, pure pot still’s distinctive characteristic is not that it is made in a pot-still – Irish malts are also made in potstills – but the type of barley used in the distillation process. Where single malt is produced from 100% malted barley, purepot still whiskey uses a mix of malted and unmalted barley.This mixed mashbill gives the whisky a distinctive spiciness known as ‘potstill character’.All the pure pot still Irish Whiskey available today is made at the New Midleton distillery, home of Jameson. Some of the older expressions of Jameson contain a large proportion of aged pure pot still whiskey.The best pot still whiskies are Redbreast, which is rounded, rich and silky due to partial ageing in sherry casks; and the younger Green Spot, which is lively, fresh and displays a flawlessly clean pure pot still character.

Blended Irish WhiskeyIrish blends are the cornerstone of the industry. Midleton and Cooley distilleries both produce several different brands, but all of Bushmills’ blended whiskey is bottled under their own label.Bushmills distillery produces only single malt whiskey. The grain component in the

Bushmills blends comes from the Midleton distillery. The Black Bush blend contains a very high proportion of sherry-aged malt whiskey.Cooley’s Kilbeggan 15yo blend was released in 2007 to celebrate the 250th anniversary of the Kilbeggan distillery. It went on to win the title of World’s Best Irish Blend at the World Whiskies Awards, as well as a Gold Medal and Best in Class award at the International Wine & Spirits Competition 2008.The Midleton distillery is the largest in Ireland, with a production capacity of 19 million litres per year. Other brands produced at the distillery include Tullamore Dew, Powers and Paddy.

Irish Single Malt WhiskeyThe vast majority of Irish single malt whiskey brands are produced at the Cooley distillery under different brand names. Besides its own brand, Bushmills produces only Knappogue Castle, Clontarf and The Irishman malt whiskies. The Midleton distillery does not produce any single malt.Bushmills is the only producer currently releasing triple-distilled Irish single malt whiskey, although it is rumoured that Cooley have recently made some triple-distilled malt.Cooley is Ireland’s only producer of peated single malt whiskey - their main peated brand is Connemara. However, the peat character of Connemara contains none of the iodine notes associated with Islay single malt whiskies.

Irish Grain WhiskeyThe Midleton distillery produces the vast majority of Irish grain whiskey for its Jameson brand. The remainder is made by Cooley.Strangely for such a big producer, none of Midleton’s whiskey is bottled as a single grain.This leaves Greenore as Ireland’s only commercially available single grain whiskey.http://whiskystuff.blogspot.ca/2010/03/irish-whisky-facts-by-tim.html

"Ralfy's whisky review 192 - Jameson Whiskey 58,931 viewsAuchentoshan is an Irish whiskey (triple distilled...)John Jameson was a Scot

"Pot StillsWith out a doubt the size and shape of the stills has a huge impact on the final character of the final product. I will try to provide some very basic information about the types of stills and other still related facts. "There are many factors that affect what style of distillate the stills produce. These includee the type of copper, shape, size, angle of the lyne arm, height, temperature, etc . This is way beyond what I know."From what I can remember, the length and angle of the lyne arm has a huge effect on the taste of the whisky.http://www.reddit.com/r/Scotch/comments/hsahm/education_series_stills_and_the_effect_on_the/

Pictureshttp://www.ireland-forever.com/old_midleton_distillery.htmhttp://www.whisky-lindispensable.com/fr/midleton-distillery/les-distilleries-d-irlande.htmlhttp://www.tripadvisor.de/LocationPhotos-g186591-d1005627-Irish_Whiskey_Trail-Ireland.htmlhttp://media.lonelyplanet.com/lpimg/25405/25405-48/preview.jpghttp://magazine.inspirato.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/01/jameson_Distillery_HED.jpghttp://www.blahbloblog.com/2012/02/07/ireland-old-jameson-distillery/http://www.blahbloblog.com/2012/02/07/ireland-old-jameson-distillery/?picasaViewAlbumId=JamesonDistillery%2C0&startIndex=17

http://production.thevitalingredient.ie/

http://www.flickr.com/photos/h-baconman/3489651786/http://www.flickr.com/photos/punkchick713/1205127092/http://www.flickr.com/photos/hangtowngal/4459383126/http://www.flickr.com/photos/geewiz/198217662/http://www.flickr.com/photos/realmattkane/8068773797/

http://i.imgur.com/9K2O6.jpg

"Simple effects of dilution

Adding water, or serving on the rocks, has a number of simple effects, such as diluting the ethanol a bit (ethanol anesthetizes your taste buds a bit), and coolingit (making your taste buds slightly less sensitive to certain flavors), but the fascinating part is what happens to the oily flavor compounds during dilution.Dilution masks some flavor compounds

Oily hydrocarbons are somewhat soluble in high-proof whiskey. There are long-chain esters and short-chain esters of many varieties. As you add water, the whiskey becomes more polar, and the long-chain esters become supersaturated and start to precipitate in the form of micelles, microscopic "droplets" of esters that have clumped together. In some liquors like absinthe or ouzo, these droplets can get so large that they become visible, and visibly cloud the drink (an intendedfeature of absinthe preparation). In whiskey, these droplets are usually microscopic and don't visibly cloud the drink, because most of the oils have been removed during chill-filtration.

However, these droplets do something important, in that short-chain esters, beingmore soluble in the droplet than they are in the diluted whiskey, enter the dropletand become trapped inside. These compounds are now less available for tasting or smelling. Fortunately, these compounds are the oily, grassy compounds that

many people do not like in their whiskey, and masking them is considered an improvement.Dilution releases other flavor compounds

There is another type of micelle "droplet" that forms in whiskey. Ethanol, in high concentrations in water, forms it's own clusters, as ethanol molecules gather up with one another. Interestingly, warmer solutions cause more clustering of ethanol molecules, as do higher concentrations. Like before, these micelles trap compounds that are more soluble in ethanol than they are in water, volatile flavorcompounds. However, unlike the oil droplets, these flavor compounds are desirable. Cooling the solution and diluting the solution both serve to "pop" these ethanol micelles, allowing them to release their trapped compounds for aroma and flavor.

So cooling and adding water can have the effect of both masking certain flavors by forcing them out of solution, and enhancing others by promoting their release back into solution. In the end, the result of the changed flavors is a matter of taste, which is why some people prefer neat, with water, or on the rocks, but one cannot deny that real chemical changes are in play.http://cooking.stackexchange.com/questions/21902/what-happens-when-you-mix-whiskey-and-water

New perspectives on whisky and waterhttp://blog.khymos.org/2007/06/03/new-perspectives-on-whisky-and-water/

"With a pot still, you cut off the heads by discarding the first distillate from a batch distillation, and cut off the tails by discarding the last distillate from a batchdistillation."Column stills are continuous, so with a column still, you can cut off the heads by having a taller column with more plates and taking a certain proportion of distillate from this point instead of the lower point where the heart comes out. These extra plates allow more separation between the ethanol and methanol, the higher parts of the column having a cooler distillate (with more methanol and lessethanol and water). Similarly, some distillate could be taken out at a lower plate, where the distillate is hotter and thus has more fusel alcohols and water and less methanol and ethanol. That said, the distillate out of a column still that only has two streams out (white dog and leftover mash) is going to have a lot of the tails left in the mash. It's necessary to cut off the tails with pot distillation, as each batch needs to be stopped when the still reaches a certain temperature or you end up boiling all your water/fusels out.This is a fair bit harder than with a pot still. Furthermore, the advances in yeast quality, manufacturing quality, and the fact that there's really not enough methanol to do any harm in the original product all make these steps less necessary. "The old fashioned pot still is a giant superannuated tea kettle whose inefficiency

puts out a distillate that has to be separated by the stillman. The heads and tails go back to be redistilled or discarded while the middle is barreled for aging. The modern column still (also called a continuous still) is quite efficient and does the separation job in the process.

Methanol Boiling point: 149°F (65°C)Ethanol Boiling point: 173.1°F (78.37°C)

"methanol being poisonous and the tails being bitter"the temperature of the vapors coming over is a very good indication of the compound that is in the distillate. Here is a list of the major chemicals in distillation and their boiling points:Acetone (134F)Methanol (wood alcohol) (147F)Ethyl acetate (171F)Ethanol 78C (172F)2-Propanol (rubbing alcohol) (180F)1-Propanol (207F)Water (212F)The heads portion of the run is the Acetone to Ethyl Acetate, Hearts is Ethanol as you know, and the remaining components comprise the tails. There is always some leaching of the heads into the hearts phase and hearts into tails since few stills are equipped for 100% separation like some laboratory stills or the stills in the oil industry. Using the boiling points and temperatures as guides, and then smelling and tasting you get a pretty good idea of when to cut the heads to the hearts and then hearts to tails. If you have ever had the opportunity to smell and taste the heads and tails v. the hearts you can pick it up pretty quickly.

"The old timers had their take on it relative to their job responsibilities, mash menwould say whisky was made in the tub, not the still, still men would say they made the whisky good, warehouse men would say the others supplied the ingredients but they were the ones who made the whisky fit to drink.

"Well, not to confuse the process any more, but when ethanol and water mix theirboiling points average out to another boiling point depending on the relative concentrations of each chemical. It's call an azeotropic mixture (more here if curious: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Azeotrope). If we get a 10-13% alcohol solution from the fermentation we'll usually see the heads section from about 170F to 180F, hearts from 180 to 192F, and tails from 192- 206F. If we get a 14-16% alcohol solution the vapor temperatures will be lower by about 1 degree because there is more alcohol in the water/alcohol mixture.

There are potentially several other factors to consider when making a cut, including the proof of the distillate, the rate at which the distillate is being collected, the type of still and the amount of reflux occurring if applicable. You can try to quantify the cutting process by accounting for all of the above, but your

sense of smell and taste will ultimately be the deciding factor. After all, if it tastes bad, you probably wont drink it and certainly wont sell it. Some try to stretch the hearts by cutting early into the heads and late into the tails to get more marketable product, but we think that adversely impacts the overall product, even after aged, so we try not to get many, if at all. Sailor is correct that some may add complexity if aged properly.http://www.straightbourbon.com/forums/showthread.php?19545-Cutting-those-heads-and-tails

"Whisky Advocate Award Distillery of the Year 2012Midleton Distilleryhttp://www.whiskyadvocateblog.com/2012/02/12/whisky-advocate-award-distillery-of-the-year/

"HOW DO YOU TASTE A WHISKY?The best way to taste whisky is with friends!There are five indicators when one tastes a whisky and they are as follows:

GLASSA tulip-shaped 'wine tasting' glass is ideal for this task as it captures the nose in the bottom of the glass, allowing it to escape only when swirled! Just under a full tot is required in the glass to taste.

COLOURLift the glass by the base or the stem and hold it up to the light. Note the colour. Ideas of colour:* Amber* Ruby gold* Champagne* Rich molasses* Treacle* Honey* Apple juice* Sunshine

LEGSSwirl the whisky in the glass and notice the "oily legs" that drip down the inside of the glass. They are an indicator of age, abv. And the way the whisky was made- the shape of the still - more or less contact with copper may well indicate thicker, short or thinner, longer legs.

NOSEThis is THE most important part in any tasting - at the optimum level, one's olfactory senses can identify up to 32 primary aromas, whilst taste only covers 4!

Place your nose into the glass and sniff LIGHTLY - this whisky is 43% abv. And

should you take a large sniff you may well experience what we know as "nose burn". A light sniff from side to side will give you a fair indication of the flavour coming through. Very often, there is pure alcohol on the nose and this is always encouraging as WATER is the magic ingredient to bring out the real nose.

Add a dash of spring water - a third of what is in the glass or just enough to stop the prickly sensation on the nose - and when you add the water, notice the oily chains or aroma-bearing compounds moving in the glass. You are injecting oxygen into the glass and allowing the flavours to escape.

Now nose.

PALATEYou do not have to suck in air, gargle or shake the whisky around your mouth in order to get the best palate out of your whisky. Just take a wee sip and swallow. The areas on your tongue will indicate different characteristics of the whisky:

Tip of your tongue - sweet

Sides of your tongue - spicy or peppery

Back of your tongue - acidity or bitterness or smoke

Centre of your tongue - described as the "oomami" - where the total flavour comes to rest after swallowing. It may feel like a ping-pong ball in the centre of your mouth filled with flavour.

FINISHThe finish on any whisky is the overall flavour left in the mouth and the warming sensation as the whisky leaves your mouth and finds its way to your stomach. That warmth is a finish. http://forum.irishwhiskeysociety.com/viewtopic.php?f=46&t=155

"The statement that there are 32 primary aromas is FALSE. Noneof the scientists had any idea where such a concept would have comefrom.There are several hundred different types of olfactory receptors,but they do not correspond on a one-to-one basis with classes of odors.Another myth is that the primary tastes each have their own little spot on the tongue:The tongue map, showing sweet on the tip of the tongue, bitteron the back and sweet and salty on the sides, long accepted as fact, is a myth. It’s based ona mistranslation of a German paper that was written in 1901 by a Harvardpsychologist. If you do any experimenting on yourself you’ll discover it’s nottrue.

Sweet, sour, salty and bitter are perceived anywhere there are taste buds.While there are differences in sensitivity to the four tastes around the tongue,these differences are small.Most researchers accept the existence of a fifth taste: umami, a Japanese word meaning savory or meaty.Unlike tastepreferences, which are hard-wired from birth, preferences for odors are, for themost part, learned through experience.The human tongue contains about 10,000 taste buds locatedin four different types of structures, called papillae. It is these papillae,not the taste buds, which give the tongue its bumpy surface.There appear to be several receptors for bitter and sweet, tuned to different molecules.The "four basic tastes" are an out-dated and language-limited model of what we perceive.Some people are born with more taste buds – and as a result may experience taste,particularly bitterness, much more intensely.There are proven differences in the way men and women smell – womencan be more sensitive to strong smells, and more capable of detectingweak aromas. There is no corresponding research that states men andwomen taste things differently. This is important to keep in mind as the industry attempts to attract more female Scotch drinkers.The brain is trainable and will get better at picking out subtleties and nuances in aromas – a developed "palate" is really a developed brain.The Olfactory Bulb, the Hippocampus, and the Visual Cortex all play a part in helping to recognize aromas.http://inebrio.com/thescotchblog/?p=403

"An aroma refers to the smells unique to the grape variety and are most readily demonstrated in a varietal wine—such as lychees with Gewürztraminer or black currant with Cabernet Sauvignon. These are smells that are commonly associatedwith a young wine. As a wine ages chemical reactions among acids, sugars, alcohols and phenolic compounds create new smells that are known as a wine's bouquet. These can include honey in an aged Sauternes or truffles in a Pinot noir. The term bouquet can also be expanded to include the smells derived from fermentation and exposure to oak. In Burgundy, the aromas of wines are sub-divided into three categories-primary, secondary and tertiary aromas. Primary aromas are those specific to the grape variety itself. Secondary aromas are those derived from fermentation and oak aging. Tertiary aromas are those that develop through bottled aging.http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Aroma_of_wine

http://www.theperfectcellar.com/blog/wine-tasting-the-aroma-wheel/

Truths about Whisky

http://books.google.ca/books?id=KixEAAAAYAAJ&pg=PR6#v=onepage&q&f=false

malt tax 16821838 Abstinence1909 Commission on whiskyEProhibitionIrish Independence Trade war British Empire

"The Wild Geese brand is owned by Avalon Group Inc. and their Irish whiskey range joins a line-up of third-party distilled spirits which includes Wild Geese Rum. Launched in May 2012, the whiskies are made by Ireland's Cooley Distillery (now owned by Beam Inc.) using what the brand owners describe as a "unique Extended Double Distillation process". When asked exactly what this was we weretold, "The distillation is over a longer period and a lower heat". We'd guess Cooleydistill their own branded whiskies equally as slowly in which case this would hardly be unique. Sounds distinctly like marketing puffery.

The brand name is not an ill-conceived attempt to piggyback on Grey Goose. (At least we hope it's not). In Irish history the term 'Wild Geese' generally refers to Irish soldiers who have left the Ireland to serve as mercenaries in continental European armies, particularly during the 16th, 17th and 18th centuries. The Wild Geese Collection of Irish whiskies in particular celebrates the 1691 'Flight of The Wild Geese' which occurred after the Treaty of Limerick.

During the Williamite War in Ireland (1688-91), Louis XIV gave military and financial support to the Irish Jacobites, including his sending 6,000 French troops.In return, in 1690, Louis demanded that the Irish send 6,000 of their troops to fight in the Nine Years War against the Dutch. Accordingly, five regiments, known as the 'French Irish Brigade', were sent. The following year, in 1691, the Irish Jacobites under Patrick Sarsfield surrendered and he signed the Treaty of Limerick. His troops were permitted to leave Ireland for service in the French Army in return for their surrender so 14,000 soldiers and 10,000 women and children left for France. This mass emigration has since become known as the Flight of the Wild Geese.

Some might say this whiskey brand represents a cynical attempt to market to patriotic Irish Americans and indeed in the USA we note that this range of whiskies goes by the longer brand name, "The Wild Geese Irish Soldiers & HeroesIrish Whiskey Collection." Tellingly the website says, "Wherever you are in the world, if you are of Irish descent you are part of this story and entitled to call yourself 'Wild Geese'. (For the record I boast more than a little Irish descent -thanks mum.)

Wild Geese Rare Irish

43% alc./vol.Producer: Cooley Distillery, Ireland info on Cooley Distillery

A blend of Irish malt and grain whiskey made by Cooley Distillery and mainly aged in first-fill ex-bourbon barrels with some second-fill also used. How long thiswhiskey is matured for is not disclosed.

Appearance: Transparent with small partials in suspension, mid golden.Aroma: Butterscotch, slightly burnt crème brûlée, vanilla and lemon zest.Taste: Burnt notes continue through to the slightly honey sweet and buttery toffee malty palate with pleasing toasty notes, cleansing citrus zest and a mild spicy oak garnish.Aftertaste: Butterscotch and light cinnamon spice. Easy but perhaps lacking real depth of flavour and with filtration issues.diffordsguide rating: 3.5/5 http://www.diffordsguide.com/class-magazine/read-online/en/2012-08-21/page-1/spirited-reviews

"Cooley Distillery

Status: OperationalEstablished: 1988Owner: Beam Global Spirits & Wine (Beam Inc.)Capacity: Not suppliedVisitor Policy: Not generally accessibleTel: Not suppliedAddress: RiverstownCooleyCo. LouthIreland (Eire)

There are those who’d have you believe that Irish whiskey is always triple distilledand never peated. That was the case until Ireland’s second whiskey distilling company, Cooley was established in 1988.

History

The heady days of Irish whiskey were at the beginning of the 19th century, when there were some 2,000 whiskey distilleries operating in Ireland. From then on theindustry has been plagued with bad luck including the Total Abstinence Movement, partition, civil war, a British trade embargo and US Prohibition. By the early 1970’s only four distilleries had survived 150 years of bad karma. Feeling somewhat beleaguered they merged to form the Irish distillers group with two distilleries, Middleton in the south and Bushmills in the North. The whiskies made by this now French owned group are triple distilled and aren’t peated.

Ask a Scot about the merits of triple distillation and he’s likely to tell you that Scottish distillers manage to get it right in two attempts. As for peat free, he’ll probably take the view that even his fellow countrymen are not so tight as not to invest in some added natural flavours.

Well back in those heady days of Irish whiskey distillation there was more than the odd Irishman that held the same opinions. Back then there was more diversity in the Irish whiskey category. Some Irish whiskey brands were double distilled and some were even peated. Cooley was established by a bunch of whiskey loving Irishmen who sought to reincarnate forgotten old Irish whiskey brands such as Tyrconnell, Lock’s (est. 1757), Millars (est. 1843) and Kilbeggan (est. 1757) and make them the way they were once made with a range of styles and flavours.

Our hero’s overcome the challenges and costs of converting a forma government potato spirit distillery and then waiting up to eight years for the whiskey to reach sufficient maturity to be sold. Their financial plight was such that in 1994 they were too broke to distil and were only saved by a $1.6 million deal with Kentucky distillers Heaven Hill who invested in stocks to sell in the US market. How they must laugh now. In 2012 after selling to Beam these whiskey loving entrepreneurs are laughing all the way to the bar to order another one of their highly regarded whiskies.

Cooley Distillery lies in a beautiful corner of Southern Ireland close to the northern boarder. Formally a government owned distillery, turning potatoes into industrial alcohol, it was designed by Czech architects and resembles a beached battle ship.

When southern Ireland split and went it’s own way, us Brits attempted to squeezethe new republic by enforcing a trade embargo. This not only hit Irish whiskey distillers, but also farmers of the countries most important crop, potatoes. So the Irish government built five identical distilleries to buy potatoes and turn them intointernationally marketable industrial alcohol. Due to the British embargo they hadto turn to Eastern Europe for expertise and equipment. The armour platted Cooley distillery was one of the five identical distilleries built for this purpose. It isthe last to survive, probably because it was the closest to Dublin where the civil servants that ran them were based.Production

Cooley’s do not have their own malting facility but buy from a specialist maltster. Cooley's main plant at Dundalk is a column still facility while their newer second distillery at Kilbeggan only has pot stills.http://www.diffordsguide.com/beer-wine-spirits/distillery/558/cooley-distillery%3Cbr%20/%3Etarget=

"The Flight of the Wild Geese refers to the departure of an Irish Jacobite army

under the command of Patrick Sarsfield from Ireland to France, as agreed in the Treaty of Limerick on October 3, 1691, following the end of the Williamite War in Ireland. More broadly, the term "Wild Geese" is used in Irish history to refer to Irish soldiers who left to serve as mercenaries in continental European armies in the 16th, 17th and 18th centuries.

The crucial turning point came during the Williamite War in Ireland (1688–91), when Louis XIV gave military and financial aid to the Irish Jacobites. In 1690, in return for 6,000 French troops that were shipped to Ireland, Louis demanded 6,000 Irish recruits for use in the Nine Years War against the Dutch. Five regiments, led by Justin McCarthy, Viscount Mountcashel formed the nucleus of the French Irish Brigade. A year later, after the Irish Jacobites under Patrick Sarsfield surrendered at the Treaty of Limerick in 1691, they were allowed to leave Ireland for service in the French Army. Sarsfield's "exodus" included 14,000 soldiers and 10,000 women and children. This is popularly known in Ireland as the Flight of the Wild Geese.http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Flight_of_the_Wild_Geese

"Under the terms of the Treaty of Limerick in 1691, which ended the war betweenKing James II and VII and King William III in Ireland, a separate force of 12,000 Jacobites had arrived in France in an event known as Flight of the Wild Geese. These were kept separate from the Irish Brigade and were formed into King James's own army in exile, albeit in the pay of France. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Irish_Brigade_%28France%29

"In 1691 as many as 20,000 Irishmen transferred to fight with the King of France.They left Limerick on French ships that had arrived, alas too late, to relieve the siege of the city. They became known as the "Wild Geese" "For in far foreign fields, from Dunkirk to Belgrade, Lie the soldiers and chiefs of the Irish Brigade" By Thomas Davis 'Remember Fontenoy!' The role of the Irish Brigade at the Battleof Fontenoy, 30 April 1745, where the French army won a notable victory over theBritish and Dutch, has been regarded as the greatest of Irish battle honours. In 1792, the Comte de Provence (future King Louis XVIII) presented the Irish Brigade (Berwick, Dillon, and Walsh regiments) upon its disbandment with a Standard of Honour (drapeau d'adieu) embroidered with an Irish Harp, Shamrock and Fleur de Lys, and the motto "1692-1792, Semper et Ubique Fidelis", in recognition of one hundred years' service to the kings of France. http://www.armchairgeneral.com/forums/showthread.php?t=96972

http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Irish_Brigade_%28France%29.png

"Irish Farewell Banner - Drapeau d' Adieu. Information about the flag can be found here. Presented by the comte de Provence, brother of Louis XVI, in 1792 tothose officers of the Irish Brigade that had followed the Bourbon princes into exile. Replica of the drapeau was presented by the Benedictine nuns of Ypres to

the 16th Irish Division some time in 1914. The replica was later given by Major-General Sir William Hickie, the GOC of the division, to his nephew Captain RickardDeasy (late Artillery Corps, Irish Army) who presented it to the Artillery School, Curragh Camp, Co. Kildare, where it is now. The whereabouts of the replica Farewell Banner had been forgotten until Swiss Historian Thomas Raymann researched different leads for two years and was able to reestablish it's location in2001.http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Irish_Farewell_Banner_%28Drapeau_d%27_Adieu%29.png

"Truth be told, I believe that the overwhelming majority of the so called "Wild Geese" were these Irish exiles, including their immediate off-spring that were born outside of Ireland. Also, I believe that a post such as this one is long overdue! Kudos to Highwayman!

Though to back up Jeroen, I did read some time ago that there was this small minority of Scottish & English troops that served within several of those famous &far-flung Celtic brigades, & who fought while serving under the flags of either France or Spain. Though by far & away the vast majority of those mercenary troops known as the Wild Geese were Irish born, or of mostly Irish descent.

Also, the Highland Jacobites fleeing Scotland back during the first half of the 18th century may have been referred to as "Wild Geese," though I've never read any sources that would indicate as much. For such a possibility must be based on mere assumption.

Here's this excerpt taken from this prior post of mine that should help shed some further light upon this very fascinating & compelling subject---

""As for the famed, venerated and fearsome mercenary "Wild Geese" (the best fighters in Europe, along with the Swiss, for over 200 years!!!), they were this often conspiculous element upon the battlefields of Europe until the demise of Napoleon and his huge well-trained Army in 1815---(upon the revered and hallowed fields of Waterloo!).

Though those Irish super fighters did not languish for long as they soon went global and sought employment in South America where there were several revolutions taking place against the Spanish and Portugese overlords/rulers/colonizers.

Needless to say the Irish once again made this great and long-lasting name for themselves as some of the fiercest, most experienced and most proficient fightingmen that this planet has ever seen!!! Though let's go back to their inception!

Initially recruited by the French in the mid 1690's---(after the fall of Limerick and defeat in their own country!)---the all-Irish Wild Geese would go on to see much

action in the Low Countries, in Northern Italy, Spain and in Bavaria.

King Louis XIV of France was so impressed with their bravery, amazing ferocity and skill at combat, especially in the Austrian campaign of 1701-1702---(the famous Irish victory at the Battle of Cremona back in 1702 comes to mind, where, after retaking the entire town, they ferociously repelled and entirely routed at the gates the very finest of Prince Eugene's toughest Austrian and German troops, who, it must be stated, out-numbered the besieged yet victoriousIrish soldiers that were fighting for the French!!!)---that he "raised the pay of the new regiments to that of the veteran Irish Brigade."

It was the great French commander Vendosme who, at the siege of Barcelona in 1697, referred to the Irish fighting under him as the "butchers of the army!" Also,he "had a particular esteem for this warlike nation, at whose head he had delivered so many combats, and gained so many victories, confessed that he was surprised at the terrible enterprises which those 'butchers of the army!' achieved in his presence."

For the next 50 years or so the Irish Brigade would go on to serve the French with great distinction and ferocity, though it was at the Battle of Fontenoy on May10th, 1745, in what is now Belgium, that those famed Irish exiles fought in what has been deemed their finest hour.

For to make a long story short the French were once again fighting the English, and the English Army was on the verge of total victory, though they didn't count on facing the wrath and fury of the Irish regiments which were unleashed at the very end of the Battle.

That's when the British commander Cumberland decided to "launch this frontal attack on the main body of the French troops" and drive them from the field. Right after Cumberland gave the order to advance over 16,000 British troops, thebest in his Army, began moving up this slope toward Fontenoy where, despite being "raked by a murderous fire from the French redoubts," they continued to drive forward with great determination.

To check the British advance the French commander-in-chief Maurice de Saxe ordered the Irish Brigade, 3800 strong, to launch themselves with fixed bayonets at their very formidable, numerically superior English foes, who, for the first time in over 50 years, were facing the Irish on the battlefield!

Their chief task was to smash right through the right flank of Cumberland's toughArmy, running down that main slope shoulder to shoulder and well ahead of all the other French regiments, and, with their fearsome bayonets levelled towards those of the English, screaming their terrible and utterly ferocious battle cry of "REMEMBER LIMERICK!!!"

The Irish eventually smashed and slammed into the advancing British, and this savage, visceral and emotional hand-to-hand struggle ensued, featuring jabbing, slashing bayonets, musket butts being slammed into faces, furious fists flying andstabbing knives!

After this very confused and ferocious melee' the Irish, while terribly out-numbered, had repelled the English and sent them reeling back in much disorder and panic!

They had achieved their ultimate ambition as they entirely routed their hated English enemies on this open battlefield while face-to-face and hand-to-hand, fighting with the utmost viciousness and determination while displaying this awesome combat prowess that was unmatched anywhere in the World! Fontenoy was their finest hour, and upon those bloody fields the Wild Geese reached the apex of their success!

Though "after nearly a century of faithful service to the crown, they (the Wild Geese) were finally disbanded when the French successfully concluded their own revolution in 1792."

The name those renowned Irish exiles had earned for themselves while fighting far and wide for the French would be forever steeped in glory, fame & unmatched honor!!!""

Well, that's all I have to say for now concerning those supremely brave & thoroughly dedicated Irish exiles---"The Wild Geese!" http://www.armchairgeneral.com/forums/showthread.php?t=96972

"Zorro But the secret of the dashing Hispanic swordsman was that he was an Irish gentleman of noble birth named William Lamport, born in 1615 in County Wexford. William hailed from a Catholic family, and left Ireland during the confederate conflict as a result of oppressive English rule. He worked for a while as a privateer, attacking Englishmen merchantmen of Cromwell’s Commonwealth.In 1643 he enlisted in one of the three Irish regiments in Spanish service (O’Neill,O’Donnell and Fitzgerald) to fight against the French forces in Spanish Flanders. He was commended for bravery and entered Spanish Royal service.

Assuming the name “Guillen Lombardo” he went to the then-Spanish colony of Mexico. Once in Mexico he developed a sympathy for the poor and native Indians.He lived amongst them studying astrology and their healing skills. For this he came to the notice of the Spanish Inquisition, which under the guise of religious “correctness” hunted out enemies of the King of Spain. William became the leaderof the fledgling Mexican independence movement. His name occurs time and timeagain in reports of Inquisitors gathering information by torture of suspected rebels. William was noted for a series of steamy affairs with Spanish noblewomen,

both married and unmarried. He became engaged to Antonia Turcious, a member of the nobility, but before he could marry he was arrested by the Inquisition and accused of conspiracy against Spain and its Most Catholic Majesty. He was jailed for 10 years, but escaped from his dungeon and emerged only at night to daub the walls of Mexico City with his name and anti-Spanish graffiti.

William was arrested in 1652 when found in the bed of the wife of the Spanish Viceroy of Mexico, Marquis Lope Diez de Caderyta. He was sentenced to 7 years imprisonment, at the end of which he was turned over to the Inquisition to be burnt at the stake as a heretic. In 1659 He was tied to the stake in Mexico City, but as the bundles of brush and wood were lit, he undid the ropes that bound himand strangled himself before the flames could reach him. http://www.armchairgeneral.com/forums/showthread.php?t=96972

"A bit more on the Regiments of the Brigade des Irlandois

The first three Jacobite Irish regiments taken into French service were those formed from Mountcashel’s Brigade, sent to France in 1690. These regiments, andthose raised thereafter for the French service, took the name of their titular Colonel, or Mestre-de-Camp Propriétaire, who effectively “owned” the regiment. This officer might in practice hold a far higher rank and did not necessarily serve with his regiment. If he were not present in person, command would be invested in a Colonel-Commandant. In order of seniority, the regiments of Mountcashel’s Brigade comprised:

Régiment de Mountcashel, taken into French service in 1690 but tracing its ancestry to an Irish regiment embodied by Charles II in 1683 from Irish garrison troops previously stationed in Tangier. Became in 1694 the Régiment de Lee, and in 1734 the Régiment de Bulkeley. Amalgamated with the Régiment de Dillon in 1775.

Régiment O’Brien, taken into French service in 1690 but raised the previous year for James II. Became Régiment de Clare in 1691 upon its Colonel becoming 4th Viscount Clare, and then the Régiment de Lee in 1693 after Clare’s death. AndrewLee transferring the following year to the former Régiment de Mountcashel, it became the Régiment de Talbot, and on Talbot being disgraced in 1696 and stripped of his commands it passed to the brother of its original Colonel and, he now being 5th Viscount, become again the Régiment de Clare. From 1706 to 1720 again the Régiment O’Brien, the colonelcy passing to a junior branch of the family, until the 6th Viscount Clare came of age and assumed the colonelcy in the latter year. The regiment then continued as the Régiment de Clare, under successive Viscounts, until 1775 when it was amalgamated with the Régiment de Berwick.

Régiment de Dillon, taken into French service in 1690 having recently been raisedfor James II. Amalgamated with the Régiment de Bulkeley in 1775, the combined

unit retaining the title of Régiment de Dillon. The name remained the same throughout its service until abolished by the decree of July 21st 1791, when it became the 87eme Régiment d’Infanterie.

After the Treaty of Limerick, James II organised an army-in-exile largely paid for by France. It fought under French command during the later battles of the War of the League of Augsburg and was disbanded at the close of that conflict under the terms of the Treaty of Ryswick. It comprised:

Irish Horse GuardsThe King’s Regiment of HorseThe Queen’s Regiment of HorseThe King’s Royal Irish Regiment of Foot GuardsThe Queen’s Regiment of FootThe Marine RegimentRegiment of Foot of LimerickRegiment of Foot of CharlemontRegiment of Foot of DublinRegiment of Foot of AthloneRegiment of Foot of ClancartyKing’s Regiment of Dismounted DragoonsQueen’s Regiment of Dismounted DragoonsThree Independent Companies of Foot

Largely from the remnants of this force, more Irish Regiments were later raised for the French service.

Régiment de Dorrington. Taken into the French service in February 1698, but tracing its ancestry back, through James II’s Royal Irish Regiment of Foot Guards,to the Royal Irish Regiment formed by Charles II in 1662. From 1718 Régiment de Roth, from 1766 Régiment de Rosscommon, and then from 1770 Régiment de Walsh-Serrant until regimental titles abolished by the decree of July 21st 1791 when it became the 92eme Régiment d’Infanterie. The 9th Earl of Rosscommon, Colonel from 1766 to 1770, was born Robert Dillon, and was a distant relation of the colonels of the Régiment de Dillon.

Régiment de Berwick. Raised 1698 for the French service out of the Regiment of Foot of Athlone, King’s Regiment of Dismounted Dragoons, and Independent Companies of Foot. Its first Colonel was James Fitzjames, Duke of Berwick, illegitimate son of James II by Arabella Churchill (and therefore nephew of the 1stDuke of Marlborough). Amalgamated with the Régiment de Clare in 1775, the combined unit retaining the title of Régiment de Berwick. The Colonelcy remainedwith house of Berwick throughout the unit’s existence, until the abolition of regimental titles by the decree of July 21st 1791 when it became the 88eme Régiment d’Infanterie.

Régiment de Galmoy. Raised 1698 for the French service out of the Regiment of Foot of Charlemont and Queen’s Regiment of Dismounted Dragoons. Dissolved January 30th 1715 and the remaining troops incorporated into the Régiment de Dillon.

Régiment de Bourke. Raised 1699 for the French service. Became Régiment de Wauchop in 1715, and passed the same year into the Spanish service, having served for most of its existence in that country. Became Regimento Connacia (ie Connaught) but in 1733 transferred to the service of Naples. Eventually incorporated in the Foreign Brigade in Neapolitan service, losing its Irish character.

Régiment de Lally. Raised 1744 out of surplus manpower left over from the reduction of the established strength of the five Irish infantry regiments then in existence. Disbanded 1762 after being taken prisoner in India, and the survivors incorporated into the Régiment de Dillon.

There was also a single regiment of Irish cavalry:

Régiment de Sheldon. Raised 1698 for the French service out of the cavalry of James II’s army-in-exile. From 1706 Régiment de Nugent, and from 1733 Régiment de Fitzjames. Disbanded 1762 after being near annihilated in the fighting at Graebenstein on June 24th of that year.

Source: The Irish Monthly Vol 59, published by the Irish Jesuit Province

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"PROTEGE INTERNATIONAL SALES, MARKETING AND DESIGN AGENCYhttp://www.protege-international.com/welcome/

The Wild Geese Irish WhiskeyThe Wild Geese RumRoute 66 BeerHigh Roller CigarettesFive and Dime CigarettesAfter Hours SilhouettesAfter Hours CigarettesAfter Dark Cigarettes

Protégé International Limited was formed in 2000 to provide an exclusive

worldwide marketing service to its clients. To date Protégé has played a pivotal role in the design and creation of iconic and evocative products for the international market, including a range of cigarette brands, a premium cigar, an American beer, the first super-premium Irish Whiskey Collection and now a Rum.Protégé International’s objective is delivering a brand to market: to communicate its essence, to produce a product of quality and integrity, to ensure that the product is memorable for the consumer.Products are formulated to have a bold strong presence on the shelf, creating unique next generation brands ranging from the classically distinctive, using striking materials, to dazzling multi-faceted portrayals, which explore the aspirations and modern values of today.Each brand developed by Protégé comes with its own narrative giving it credibilityand longevity. At each stage of the marketing process another chapter is written in an exciting story.http://www.protege-international.com/about-us/

THE FLIGHT OF THE WILD GEESE

Dora Sigerson

WRAPT in the darkness of the night, Gathering in silence on the shore, Wild Geese flown from hiding on the hills. (Hark ! the wolf-hound ; thrice he howled before), Wild geese with forest leaves tangled in their hair. Is that blood on the heaving breasts of some, Or dull red clay from fox-deserted lair ? Why thus so stealthy do they come ? Wild geese, women's arms round you in the darkness ; Women's hearts forbid to cry though they break ; Little children must not sob in their kissing, "Brother, for ever? Oh hush thee, for God's sake ! " Wild geese with fierce eyes, deathless hope in your hearts, Stretching your strong white wings eager for your flight, These women's eyes will watch your swift returning. (Thrice the banshee cried in the stormy night.)

Flinging the salt from their wings and despair from their hearts, They arise on the breast of the storm with a cry and are gone. When will you come home, wild geese, with your thousand strong ? (The wolf-dog loud in the silence of night howls on.) Not the fierce wind can stay your return nor tumultuous sea — Nor the freedom France gives to your feet on her luxuriant shore. No smiles for your love like the tears of your sorrowing land. Only Death in his reaping could make you return no more. White birds, white birds, I dream of that glad home-coming ;

Though human eyes could not mark your silent flight, Women lie face down with clenched hands in the sea. (Thrice the banshee cries in the stormy night.)

++++++++++++++++Aubrey De Vere (1814-1902)

A Ballad of Sarsfield; or, the Bursting of the Guns[This intercepting of De Ginkle’s siege train on its way to Limerick is one of the most famous episodes in the career of the gallant Patrick Sarsfield.]

Sarsfield rode out, the Dutch to rout,And to take and break their cannon;To Mass went he at half-past three,And at four he crossed the Shannon.

Tyrconnel slept. In dream his thoughtsOld fields of victory ran on;And the chieftains of Thomond in Limerick’s towersSlept well by the banks of the Shannon.

He rode ten miles and he crossed the fordAnd couch’d in the wood and waited;Till, left and right on march’d in sightThat host which the true men hated.

“Charge!” Sarsfield cried; and the green hillsideAs they charged replied in thunder;They rode o’er the plain, and they rode o’er the slain,And the rebel rout lay under!

He burn’d the gear the knaves held dear—For his King he fought, not plunder;With powder they cramm’d the guns, and ramm’dTheir mouths the red soil under

The spark flash’d out—like a nation’s shoutThe sound into heaven ascended;The hosts of the sky made to earth reply,And the thunders twain were blended!

Sarsfield rode out the Dutch to rout,And to take and break their cannon;A century after, Sarsfield’s laughterWas echoed from Dungannon.

(From The Book of Irish Poetry. Ed. with an Introduction by Alfred Perceval Graves. Dublin: The Talbot Press, n. d.)++++++++++

David Quinn, science guy does quality assuranceBarry Crockett (Master Distiller since 1981. His dad, Max was MD before and Brian Nation is after), Billy Leighton (Master Blender), David Quinn (Master of Science), and Brendan Monks (Master of Maturation)3rd distillation removes Fusel oils congers and heavy flavors and smellsunmalted barley adds mouthfeel and texture (warm and smooth)take cuts in 2nd and 3rd distillationdifferent combos of feints [Also known as tails, or after-shots. The final spirit fromthe Spirit still at the end of Distillation The Feints are low in alcohol, and are re-distilled.]age individuallychange character of the stillsdistillation rates impacting the refluxsimilar to American distillersdifferent types of grain whiskiesProduction program seasoned oak unseasoned oak2007 Vintage. Port Casks for 23 years, American white oak for 20+ yearsPort, Madeira, Sherry, Marsala, Malaga, used to mature Irish whiskey 1800sFrom Whisky Cast 135

Marketing to increase sales of 18 year-old as it is no longer seen as "expensive."

"Approximately 100 kg grain will make 600-liter mash. The expected end result is32-35 liter pure (theoretically 100%) alcohol, from which we can make about 80 to 87 liter whiskey that has the strength of 80 proof. http://www.probrewer.com/resources/distilling/whiskey.php

if the distiller includes too many fusels in the collected distillate then the result will be a spirit that will taste unclean and would, if drunk, induce quite a hangover. Remove them all, however, and the remaining congeners will not hold together properly. Controlling the distillation, in order to separate these congeners, and enable decisions about what to keep and what not to keep, is not easy. Then one considers that all the congeners have different boiling points and as the vapours rise they are condensed and collected at different moments one can begin to appreciate the art involved. When producing spirits for consumption,some of the vapours are undesirable and will be rejected ; depending on the end product the distiller will take great care to collect only the required elements fromthe condensed vapours to make spirit.

The most important factors are : raw ingredients—Size & shape of distilling apparatus—resultant distillate’s alcoholic strength

Alcoholic distillation is the process of separating and concentrating the ethyl alcohol from a fermented liquid. It works on the basis that ethyl alcohol, with a boiling point of 78.3°C, is more volatile than water and thus when a fermented wash is heated, the alcohol vapourises before the water. These alcoholic vapours are collected through condensation and the other vapours and solids are rejected.The collected alcohol is mostly made up of Ethyl alcoholAlso known as ethanol ; it is the intoxicating ingredient, is produced during fermentation and concentrated during distillation.

Methyl alcoholAlso known as methanol ; the lightest of alcohols, volatile, poisonous and discarded to a great extent with the heads. Extremely small amounts of other alcohols including :Fusels Organic compounds produced when carbon and hydrogen atoms are rearranged during fermentation and distillation; a source of amyl, butyl and propyl alcohols they have a characteristic rank odour.Aldehydes Highly reactive organic compounds produced during the dehydrogenation of alcohol whence their name ; giving a pleasant character on the nose and developing more complexity with age.Ketones Similar to aldehydes ; sweetish on the nose.

EstersOrganic compounds that react with water to produce acids ; they have pleasant odours giving fragrance and flavour.PhenolsSimilar to, but with a higher boiling point than alcohols ; acidic in nature they are sharp and spicy on the nose. These latter compounds, known as congeners, provide the spirit with its identity, its nose and its palate. If one is aiming at a neutral distillation, there would be less than 1 % of higher alcohols, fusels and congeners in the resulting distillate.http://www.distillnation.com/process-of-rum.php

Redbreast is the first ongoing pure pot still whiskey in about 80 years.1,000 barrels/day30 million litres of pure alcohol36 – 40 million bottlesfirst two are wash stills get it from 10% to 20% - 40% low wine, then done in feint still, head and tail cut. Spirit still is #3, cut again.

Whiskey Cast 279

"The recipe for Bushmill's Black Bush whiskey: Mash a grain mix of equal parts (by weight) of malted and unmalted barley. Shoot for an alcohol level of 8%. Triple distillation in a pot still is the method they use but anything you can do to get it to 80% should work. Dilute down to 63% and age in Oloroso sherry casks

for about ten years (keep in mind the Irish climate is a cool, mild one), then mix it with aged corn whiskey of the same strength then reduce to 40% and bottle. (20% corn whiskey, 80% of the malt whiskey). The strain of barley they use is Golden Promise. An ale yeast should be used for the ferment. http://homedistiller.org/grain/wash-grain2/bushmills

"Irish Whiskey - 10 parts malted Barley, 7 parts fresh barley grain, 1 part fresh Oats, 1 part fresh Rye, 1 part fresh Wheat. Grist & proceed. http://homedistiller.org/grain/wash-grain/recipes

1494 "Given that early Irish history is largely an oral tradition, the first written and unambiguous reference to aqua vitae being distilled from cereal actually appears in Scotland. Nevertheless, historians are largely at one in concluding thatdue to the close ties at that time between Ireland and Scotland, the likelihood is that whiskey distilling from local grains occurred in both countries at about the same time.

1601 "Flight of the Earls

Up to this period, Ireland was largely ruled by Irish chieftains who operated underthe ancient Celtic tradition of Brehon Law. The English tried unsuccessfully to introduce licensing and tax systems but given that their control extended only as far as the Pale, a district around modern day county Dublin, distilling went unencumbered from English law. Distilling was a cottage industry with hundreds of home based distilleries throughout the country. Distilling whiskey was as much a part of ever day country life as butter-making or meat curing. This all changed in 1601 with the ill-fated Spanish invasion at the Battle of Kinsale (Co. Cork), the subsequent Flight of the Earls and the collapse of the old Gaelic order. The Englishconquest of Ireland could continue unfettered and the implementation of an English taxation system could be implemented. By 1608 the first distillery licence was granted to Charles Waterhouse in Munster.

1617 "A supreme present

Richard Boyle, the 1st Earl of Cork and, friend of Sir Walter Raleigh, notes in his diary for 20th March, 1617 what is in all probability the first recorded export of whiskey to America (not just any whiskey but ‘Choice Aquavite’). The entry occurs in a sequence of entries which show that he was in Youghal, East Cork, at the time.

"Sent by fforest servant to Mr. Nicholas Galwaye, 32 gallons of choice Aquavite, tomy cozen Barsie of Plymouth, to be presented to Sir Walter Raleigh for his Guianavoyadge."

(The entry occurs in a sequence of entries which show that he was in Youghal at the time which also means that the whiskey was from Youghal where the vast bulk of his various business interests were concentrated. Boyle was noted to always record gifts particularly to Sir Walter Raleigh from whom he had bought his Youghal Estates.)

In 1682, Peter the Great of Russia declared “...of all wines, the Irish wine is best”.

In 1755, Samuel Johnson, in his Dictionary of that year, wrote an entry for Uisce Beatha; “....the Irish sort is particularly distinguished for its pleasant and mild flavour. In Scotland it is somewhat hotter”.

1792 "The Origins of Pot Still Irish Whiskey

No one really knows when the practice by Irish distillers of adding unmalted barley to the mashbill originated, but the imposition of a series of malt taxes by the English throughout the 18th century certainly would suggest that inventive Irish distillers sought ways to avoid paying tax on malt – enter Pot Still Irish Whiskey. Surprisingly and somewhat by accident, the Irish distillers discovered that the addition of ‘green’ barley resulted in a particularly pleasant tasting whiskey – full of flavour and with a distinctively creamy mouthfeel.

1800 "Industrial revolution

By the late 1700s, the industrial revolution arrived to the main cities of Ireland and the Irish whiskey distilling industry embraced all of the advantages which it presented. Many of the large Irish whiskey houses came to the fore during this period – the Jamesons, Powers and Murphy families. Excise laws were also changed so that tax was paid based on the number of times a whiskey pot still was 'charged' rather than the volume of liquid it contained. By 1835, the number of distilleries in Ireland had mushroomed to 93 and the largest pot-still in the world was in operation at Midleton Distillery, Cork.Pot Still Irish Whiskey was in great demand throughout the globe and by the turn of the century, Irish whiskey was in its first golden age.

1830 "Continuous distillation

In 1830, the former Inspector General of Excise in Ireland, Aeneas Coffey, filed a patent for a new invention for what was to revolutionise the distilling industry worldwide and initiate the demise of the Irish whiskey distilling tradition. Coffey had invented a new continuous distillation process which would, as a contemporary government publication described, lead to ‘the speediest and most economical device for preparing a highly concentrated spirit in a single operation’.

These new ‘patent’ or ‘coffey’ stills were shunned by the Irish distillers who decried the 'silent spirit' which this new apparatus produced. Finding no buyers for his invention in Ireland, Coffey packed his bags and moved to Scotland where he was welcomed by a nascent Scotch whisky industry who were only too happy to put this new invention to use. At this time, Scottish whisky was largely comprised of rather inconsistent and powerful highland malt whisky. The lighter and more palatable whiskey which came from the Coffey stills was ideal for the purpose of blending with their malt whiskys giving rise to a whole new and revolutionary style of whiskey, Blended Scotch whisky.

1838 "Total abstinence

Whilst the introduction of the Coffey still was to ultimately precipitate the downfallof the dominant Irish whiskey industry, a number of other events led to more rapid and dramatic consequences. At a time when whiskey sales were soaring, the country was gripped by poverty, with many losing themselves in alcohol. In 1838, a capuchin friar from Co. Cork, Fr. Theobald Matthew, started his “total abstinence” campaign. In just 5 short years over 5 million of a population of 8 million Irish citizens had taken “the pledge”. That same year, 20 distilleries closed.

"1847HomeThe Great Famine

Following a succession of failed potato crops, on which the vast majority of the Irish population subsisted, the Great Famine of the 1840s ensued. In the space offive years, over 1 million Irish citizens perished and another million emigrated, many to the United States of America. The Irish market for Irish whiskey was dealt another blow.

1850HomeRise of the Blenders

In the 1850s another landmark change in legislation brought about the next major milestone in the industry. The tax laws were changed whereby tax would be paid on shipment rather than on production of whiskey spirit. This meant that whiskey could be purchased and put in ‘bond’ with no up-front taxation charges. This, in conjunction with the Scottish uptake of the Coffey still, gave rise to a major commercial advantage for the Scottish blenders. Merchants with names such as Walker, Bell and Dewar, having begun as grocers and tea importers, brought their business acumen to bear on the whiskey business. They purchased robust highland malt and lighter grain whiskey in bond and without the excise burden of holding stocks of new make whiskey, set about creating a new blended whiskey which would have a consistent, lighter taste and which could be produced

relatively cheaply and in large quantities.

1879HomeThe Truth About Whiskey

So exasperated were the Irish pot still distillers with the new invention and the tasteless spirit that it produced, that in 1879, the four leading Dublin distillers joined forces to publish a book entitled ‘Truths About Whiskey’. The book called for the banning of the apparatus and claimed that this ‘nefarious’ and ‘silent’ spiritshould not be allowed to describe itself as whiskey.

1890HomeIrish whiskey dominates

Regardless, the Irish whiskey industry forged ahead in their belief that the qualityof their pot still whiskey rendered them untouchable. Output was increasing in line with global demand and Irish pot still whiskey continued to prosper. Indeed as the Scottish distillers and blenders were honing their trade, the Irish industry got an unlikely boost. The Phylloxera louse struck France and wiped out the vineyards of the Cognac region resulting in the Irish whiskey’s main competitor, French brandy, being taken out of the market. Between 1823 and 1900, the output of Ireland’s distilleries quadrupled. Dublin whiskey, with its six powerhousedistilleries, dominated the Irish and world stage. Distilleries such as Jameson, George Roe and Powers employed hundreds of workers with their own cooperages, stables, blacksmiths and carpenter shops and they exported right around the globe. Indeed it was about this time that the Dublin distilleries, intent on forging their uniqueness amongst other whiskies from Scotland and provincial Ireland, introduced the idea of spelling their whiskey with an e. This phase of history is regarded as the second golden era of Irish whiskey.

1900HomePot Still Scotch whiskey?

Even as Scottish blended whisky continued to gain momentum, certain Scotch distilleries nevertheless hedged their bets and began the process of distilling Irishstyle pot-still whiskey by adding unmalted barley to their mash. Scotland’s largestwhiskey distilling enterprise, DCL, went one step further in 1900 when it opened its own Irish distillery at the Phoenix Park in Dublin city. “There is no Patent Still on the Premises” exclaimed a trade publication of the time and continued to claimthat “It is the determination of this company to make the finest Dublin whisky”.

1909HomeThe Royal Commission

Following a series of legal challenges regarding what could and could not be called 'whiskey', the ‘Royal Commission on Whisky and other Potable Spirits’ was set up. Following a year and a half of submissions from the Irish and Scottish distillers and lobbying from the large whiskey merchants, the Commission found that grain whisk(e)y from patent stills was indeed whiskey. The Irish distillers hadlost their argument and the die was cast. This was the single biggest blow to the Irish whiskey industry as the Scottish industry had already made considerable advances in the area of blended whiskey from which the Irish were neither willingnor able to recover.

1916HomeEconomic and social turmoil

Just as Irish whiskey was riding a wave, the beginning of the end was just aroundthe corner. Over the preceding years, the Scottish distillers had been radically increasing output of whiskey from Coffey stills giving rise to an enormous surplus of whiskey and the collapse of whiskey prices. Combined with recession and the onslaught of the World War I, the Irish whiskey industry found itself in the eye of a storm. 1916 brought the Easter Rising and the economic turmoil which accompanied it. In 1917 all distilling in Ireland ceased as all barley was required for the war effort.

1920HomeLoss of the main market

Up to this time, the largest whiskey market in the world was the USA, which also happened to be the largest export market for pot still Irish whiskey. In 1919, the Volstead Act was passed and Prohibition was enacted and overnight the single most important market for pot still Irish whiskey was shut down. The lifeline for the Irish industry was cut.

1921HomeIrish War of Independence

The Irish War of Independence in 1921 was followed by the Irish Civil War from 1922 to 1923. While the Irish were embroiled in civil strife, Scottish

entrepreneurs like Walker, Buchanan and Dewar had come to grips with the modern concept of whisky brands and were building their brands around the world. Meanwhile in Ireland, the whiskey industry continued to implode and as the 1930s came to a close, the Irish whiskey industry had been decimated.

As if to add insult to injury, there was plenty of bootleggers during Prohibition eraUSA, seeking to cash in on the Irish whiskey reputation. Much of this whiskey wasof such an extraordinarily poor standard that it caused every right minded drinkerto treat with extreme caution anything which purported to be Irish whiskey.

1933HomeGood news then bad news

By the time Prohibition had ended in 1933, the Irish whiskey industry was reeling and was in no shape to cash in on the pent-up demand that the US market now represented. The Irish distillers had reduced their stocks of maturing pot-still whiskey, the reputation of which had been irrevocably damaged by the bootleggers, while the Scots were ready to expand with their stocks of ready available blended whiskey.

To compound matters, in 1932 the recently emancipated Irish government entered into a Trade War with its former landlord and largest trading partner, Great Britain, culminating in exclusion to 25% of world markets. This meant that the remaining exports for Irish whiskey disappeared behind a wall of duties and levies.

1945HomeExposure to Scotch

American soldiers, having been based in the UK during World War II, return homewith a newly acquired tasted for Scotch whiskey. This creates an instant demand for Scotch whisky throughout the USA.

1960HomeScotch rules

Scotch whisky was the drink-du-jour of the 1960s and the name Scotch became the byword for whiskey.

1966HomeRevival for Irish whiskey

By 1948, there were only 3 distilleries left in the Republic of Ireland and three in Northern Ireland. By 1953, only 5 survived on the island, mainly based on domestic demand. These were the Jameson and Powers distilleries of Dublin, CorkDistilleries Company (CDC) of Cork and the Bushmills and Coleraine distilleries in Northern Ireland. Sensing that the writing was on the wall versus the might of theScottish distilleries, Jameson, Powers and CDC merged in 1966 to form Irish Distillers Ltd. This date marked the start of the revival for Irish whiskey.

1970HomeJameson leads the revival

Recognising that the way forward was through exports and accepting that their whiskey styles had to be reinvented, a whole new range of lighter, blended whiskeys was created and the world’s love affair with Irish whiskey was re-ignited. Additionally, by merging, Irish Distillers were able to pool their marketing efforts in order to invest in their flagship brand, Jameson, which became the mainvehicle through which whiskey drinkers around the world would be reacquainted with Irish whiskey.

1975HomeNew state-of-the art distillery

Recognising the early signs of interest and demand for Irish whiskey, Irish Distillers Ltd. took the momentous step of closing its land-locked distilleries in Dublin and in 1975 opened a new state-of-the art distillery at the home of the Cork Distilleries Co. in Midleton, Co. Cork. This distillery was, and is to this day, one of the most advanced in the world. In fact, there are two distilleries in Midleton, a pot-still and column still distillery which means that the various brands of whiskey can be made in the one facility.

This date also marked a momentous decision by Irish Distillers. While the world seemed hell bent on malt whiskey - either in a blend or as a Single Malt - Irish Distillers Ltd. still believed that pot still whiskey defined the traditional flavour character of Irish whiskey and that its new blended whiskeys should still bear the hallmark influence of pot still whiskey. Thus, the new copper pot-stills and brewing equipment were commissioned to be able to replicate the distinct pot stillflavour characteristics of the founding families and the future of the pot still whiskey tradition was safeguarded. Had this faith and belief not existed, the worldmight have been a poorer place.

1988Home

Irish Distillers Ltd. joins Group Pernod Ricard

Irish Distillers Ltd. (IDL) become a member of Group Pernod Ricard. Previously, a hostile take-over bid had been launched by a joint venture of Grand Met, Allied Lyons & Guinness. This bid was resisted on the basis that a break-up of the company would ensue. The 'White Knight' in the guise of French owned Pernod Ricard, arrived on the scene and led a friendly takeover. The French owned company, which was a rising player in the international spirits industry, saw the future potential for Irish whiskey. Crucially, not only did the new owners promise to keep the company intact but the French multi-national would provide distribution opportunities for Jameson, and the other IDL Irish whiskey brands, through its well established global sales network.

2011HomeDemand for pot-still

The appeal and interest in Irish whiskey, forged mainly by the global success of Jameson, has meant that there is a groundswell of new demand for different types of whiskeys, particularly the traditional pot-still whiskeys which once wowedthe world. On the 5th of May, two new Single Pot Still whiskeys were launched, namely Powers John's Lane Release and Midleton Barry Crockett Legacy, joining the two existing Single Pot Still brands of Redbreast and Green Spot.http://www.singlepotstill.com/spshistory.do?menuId=2&url=sps_history_landing_page

"FULL BODIEDRaisins, prunes, figs, nutty, malt extract, oily, leather, pipe tobacco, ground coffee.SPICYBlack pepper, cedarwood, cinnamon, barley, toasted oak, bitter almond, dark chocolate, tea.SWEETLiquorice, sherry, plums, apricot, golden syrup, marshmallow, vanilla, toffee, butterscotch.DELICATEMelon, pear, pine, perfume, floral, grassy, green apple, citrus, blackcurrant, banana.http://www.singlepotstill.com/spswhiskeys.do?menuId=3&url=sps_whiskeys_landing_page

"Full to the rafters with aroma and flavour. A strong contribution from distillates which have matured in Oloroso sherry casks give Redbreast its trademark Christmas cake character.

"NOSE A complex spicy and fruity aroma with toasted wood notes evident.TASTE Full flavoured and complex; a harmonious balance of spicy, creamy, fruity, sherry and toasted notes.FINISH Satisfyingly long, the complex flavours linger on the palate.http://www.singlepotstill.com/redwhiskeysloader.do?menuId=7&menuItemId=20&url=redbreast_whiskey_redbreast12_page

"Jameson then is a curious blend. Taste an old bottling and you'll see how it has changed over the years. It used to taste a bit like modern Power's, but as Power'shas character this had to stop. http://homepage.eircom.net/~whiskey/pajos/blends.htm

"Long has Irish Whiskey suffered from a certain perceived but possibly self imposed identity. However this identity in a sense cannot be denied and is one of the reasons that it survived at all. In the late 60's early 70's the Irish Whiskey Industry was on it's knees and drastic action was required to save it. This lead to the amalgamation of Jameson, Paddy & Powers and eventually Bushmills, the only surviving Irish Distilleries at the time, to create the monopoly that was Irish Distillers. Savings had to be made and the Blend became the main stay of Irish Whiskey. A concerted effort was made to promote Irish whiskey initially in Irelandthen the rest of the world in a certain way. The mantra became triple distilled for smoothness as opposed to the harsher double distilled scotch. All very general and nice and neat for easy marketing. However in the past 2 decades Irish Whiskey has been transformed and it is now as diverse and colourful as the 4 provinces of Ireland and harks back to the way it once used to be.

Irish Whiskey now boasts a diversity of whiskey styles that possibly even Scotland cannot match. We have triple distilled pure pot still and pure pot still & grain blends, we have triple distilled malts and malt & grain blends and even a mixture of all of the above. All these fit with what people think of as traditional Irish Whiskey. However we also have double distilled malts and malt blends whichare peated and unpeated and even a successfully marketed single grain whiskey.This is the new face of Irish whiskey which in tradition goes further back in time than the one that has been created in the 20th Century. Ireland was all things to whiskey back in the 18th & 19th centuries when it dominated the Whiskey industry like Scotland dominates today. Therefore it is only fair to give Irish whiskey a second closer look and the attention it deserves.

"Cooley Distillery, Co Louth 1987-Present

Established in 1987 by Entrepreneur John Teeling. Which at the time broke the monopoly of Irish whiskey production in Ireland as Irish Distillers owned Bushmills and Midleton which single handed produced the majority of Ireland's Brands. Cooley converted an ex governmental spirit distillery into a successfully functioning whiskey distillery and now can out match Midleton in the brand stakes

if not volume. Brands consist of Connemara, Greenore, Kilbeggan, Lockes & Tyrconnell. They also supply numerous independent sellers and supermarket chains. If a supermarket is selling it’s own branded Irish Whiskey chances are it’s Cooley.

Current Annual Output: Circa 2.25million litres (malt) & 2.25 million litres (grain) 2008.

Owner: Cooley 100% Irish Independent Limited Company

Midleton Distillery 1975-Present

Established in 1975 when IDG amalgamates CDC, Jameson & Powers shut up their perspective shops and moved their combined production literally lock, stock & barrel to a single operation at the new Midleton Distillery. The distillery boasts acombination of 13 75,000 interconnected stills creating by and far the most technically complex and modern distillery of its day. A title they may well still holdto this day. This modern marvel of whiskey distilling is now turning over 2.6 million cases of Jameson alone.

Current Annual Output: 15 MLA (Grain) 19 MLA ((combined) Unconfirmed)

Owner: Pernod-Ricard

Stills: 4 x 28,500L (2 Wash, 1 Feints, 1 Spirit)

Old Midleton Distillery, Co Cork 1825-1975

Established in 1825, closed 1975, but restored to house the Jameson Heritage Centre. Home to the world’s biggest pot still with a capacity of circa 143875 litres (31,648 gallons), this used to be the strong hold of Cork Distillers Company Ltd (CDC). In the mid sixties however CDC, John Jameson & John Power distilleries amalgamated to form Irish Distillers Group (IDG). The Old Midleton distillery closed it doors in July 1975 only to be reincarnate in the New Midleton Distillery.

Current Annual Output: N/A (Silent)

Past Output: Circa 4.5 Million Liters (Bernard 1885)

Owner: Pernod-Ricardhttp://irishwhiskeychaser.webs.com/irishwhiskeyinbrief.htm

"The legendary Redbreast up to recently was only ever available in a 12yo version. Redbreast is a fantastic Single Pot Still Irish Whiskey and a slightly more modern version of what made Irish whiskey famous in the 18th Century. The 15yo version from 2005 could possibly be one of the best Irish whiskies produced

in the last 10-20 years. Unfortunately only one large batch was produced in 2005 for La Masion Du Whisky's anniversary. If you are lucky you may find a few German or Dutch suppliers stocking it but it is very scarce and has been elevated to the collectors market.

There was also a blend version of this which did not make any impact on the Irishmarket and was quickly shelved, little or no information available on it's creation though.

The Brand was relaunched in 2011 and IDL are firmly committed to growing it as a Brand. The current line up is 12yo, 12yo Cask strength and 15yo.From Irish Whiskey Chaser

" A visit to the Irish Distillers bottling plantAbout 18 months ago, I toured the Midleton distillery in Cork where Jameson, Powers and other whiskeys are distilled and matured. The story ended slightly prematurely on that occasion because no whiskey is bottled at the distillery. Instead, it is tankered away to various corners of Ireland to be wrapped in glass and christened with fancy labels.

Last week, the Irish Whiskey Society was invited to peek inside Irish Distillers' main bottling plant. This industrial facility is known, rather charmingly, as "Fox & Geese", which is the name of the surrounding Dublin townland. We weren't able to take photos inside (it's a safety restriction that prefers to keep electronic equipment away from alcohol vapour) which is a pity because it is really worth seeing.

I didn't know until very recently that Fox & Geese was a maturation site for John Power & Son back in the 1950s. The original buildings are still there, low and windowless, and not entirely suited for the uses they are put to today. It got its current role as a bottling plant in 1965, at about the same time that Irish Distillers (IDL) was formed from the Powers, Jameson and Cork Distillery companies.

All the big IDL brands - Jameson, Powers, Paddy - are bottled at Fox & Geese today, along with Dunphy's, Crested Ten and Coleraine. Coleraine was a surprise to many of us since it has a strong association with Bushmills. It used to say on the label that it was distilled, blended and bottled by Bushmills. When Bushmills left IDL in 2005, the Coleraine brand stayed behind. I suspect its malt componentstill comes from Bushmills though.

The Bushmills connection remains in another respect too: Jameson still rolls off the Antrim distillery's bottling line. It's a contingency in case something goes awry at Fox & Geese.

IDL puts gin and vodka through Fox & Geese too (Cork Dry Gin, Huzzar, Nordoff).

And, in another surprising revelation at how friendly the whiskey business is, Fox & Geese produces Southern Comfort for all of Europe. That's a Brown-Forman brand, ie the company that owns Jack Daniel's. The arrangement is known as the Clintock contract and it has been in place since 1982. (Clintock is an Irish subsidiary of Brown-Forman.)

In the 1990s, IDL repatriated all of the bottling for the US market. Up to then, whiskey was shipped in bulk across the Atlantic. Transporting in bulk sounds quiteeconomical to me but IDL prefers to have absolute control over the whole process, even if it means shipping a lot of glass. The Pernod Ricard philosophy is to leave the local organisations in absolute control over their own production and marketing so bottling happens in Ireland, where they can keep an eye on it and tweak it.

There are six bottling lines at Fox & Geese that can cope with bottles from 50ml up to 1,750ml. With all of the brands and country variations, they handle about 200 different SKUs (stock keeping units - essentially anything with a unique label)on the IDL side, and a fruther 75 SKUs on the Clintock side.

The plant also ships out whiskey in bulk volumes between 25l and 25,000l for food manufacturers and independent bottlers (Hot Irishman, for example).

The Vathouse

Five or six tankers a day roll up from Midleton and disgorge their contents into the many vats in the vathouse. The grain and pot still whiskey components arrive separately, at cask strength. Some blending is done at Midleton so the sherry/bourbon or first-fill/second-fill cask balance will have been sorted out already.

The largest vat I spotted holds 19,860 gallons (about 90,000l). What is remarkable is that these receiving vats are made from oak. The nicest surprise of the day was discovering that the oldest vat dates back to 1833 and came from the original Dublin Jameson distillery. Even the "new" oak vats here date from 1971.

There is no advantage to using oak over stainless steel. It has no effect on the whiskey and you can see the staining on the outside where the wooden vats have"wept" whiskey. But it's tangible evidence of centuries of the distilling craft and the company's heritage. They can even tell you the name of the cooper who made that 1833 vat.

I think these vats are where they add spirit caramel (for consistency of colour between batches). We passed the tubs of caramel on the way into the vat room. It was emphasised to us again that only very small amounts are used and that it

has no effect on taste.

Water

The whiskey is watered down to bottling strength at Fox & Geese. This water is from the public town supply, which was a bit of a thrill, since my home is on the same pipe. Here it's first put through a sand filter, then an expensive reverse osmosis filter to remove the chlorine, fluorine, calcium, magnesium, iron, etc. Theresult is pure, deionised water and that's what goes into the whiskey.

Chill-filtration

This was a fairly abstract concept for me before the visit. I knew it stripped some not-quite-dissolved components from the whiskey so the product would never go cloudy, even if stored at a low temperature. But I hadn't seen even a photo of a chill filter so couldn't guess how elaborate the process might be.

We saw one of the two chill-filtration units at Fox & Geese. It turns out it's a very simple device that first chills the liquid to about 0° in a heat exchanger then forces it through a filter made from cellulose plant material. About 160,000l can pass through the filter before it needs to be changed.

We were assured that blind tasting has proved that the filtered and unfiltered whiskeys are indistinguishable in flavour. We also sniffed a spent filter. It's not all that strong-smelling, which lends support to the claim it's not removing anything important. It is stained, though, and there is a discernible colour difference in the liquid after the process.

Bottling

After blending, watering and filtering it's time to empty the vats into handy containers suitable for private consumption. There is some noisy theatre as the bottles clink along the line to be grabbed individually, swung upsidedown, rinsed out with whiskey, filled, checked, capped and labelled. All automatically, at a speed of about 180 bottles per minute on one line alone.

The glass comes almost entirely from Irish and UK suppliers - Quinn, Ardagh and Allied Glass. If you want the best bottles though, you have to go to the French, who have developed some tricks catering to the Cognac industry. So some premium glass comes from France.

Labels are printed in Italy and Scotland. The cardboard cartons come from Smurfit.

In one year, they are currently bottling in Fox & Geese 3,664,000 9-litre case equivalents for IDL brands and a further 510,000 for Clintock. (Recall that there isa backup line at Bushmills that pushes out another 0.5m case equivalents per year.) They foresee Jameson becoming one of the top ten global spirit brands by 2020 which would require at least a doubling of volume sales. It's still a single-shift operation at Fox & Geese (though the warehouse guys seem to have two shifts) so there is plenty of latent capacity.

Warehousing

They try to keep inventory to a minimum on site, but there is still warehousing to hold stock for a week or two until a load is ready to be trucked to Dublin port. The warehouse we saw was quite spectacular. It's eight storage levels high, with narrow bays. The shelves are stacked by humans in mechanised exoskeletons. Think of the AMP suits from Avatar. OK, not quite, but the reality is only slightly less awesome and lethal. The operator sits within what I'm going to call a "high-reach turret truck" (I don't know what they are called, just that I want one). Thanks to underfloor guide wires, the truck can zoom backwards down a bay, then lift both load and operator high into the air in a trice. See for yourself on YouTube.

Wild, eh? To drive one of those things you have to be certified in abseiling, just soyou can get yourself down in an emergency. No kidding.

Customs & Excise

There is an old Customs & Excise office nestling still between the vats, and some of the caging that used to ensure that spirit couldn't be moved from one part of a warehouse to another without going past a customs officer. The taxman is no longer on site but he is still keeping a beady eye on proceedings, hooked into the plant's SAP control software. If someone makes a correction on the computer they can expect a phone call looking for an explanation.

Quality Control

The bulk whiskey that leaves Midleton is approved by a tasting panel before it's allowed off to Dublin. When it gets to Fox & Geese it is sampled again before the tanker is pumped out. As the whiskey wends its way through the various vats andpipes it is tasted 18 times against reference samples to make sure all is well. Samples will also be sent back down to Midleton for further analysis.

It is hard to imagine that any bad whiskey hits the shelves with all of this

obsessive testing but, if it ever does, each bottle has a code so it can be traced back to the precise batch it came from. The cardboard cartons are similarly marked.

Lean

Many years ago, I made the pilgrimage by bullet train, local train and bus to visit the Toyota factory complex in Japan. The Toyota Production System became famous for constantly accumulating small efficiencies until there wasn't a production line in the world that could match it. The process of continuous improvement combined with various other practices became known as Lean Manufacturing and has since permeated medicine, software and many other industries that have nothing to do with metal-bashing.

I'm quite the fan of Lean (for a quick taste, read about the 7 kinds of waste on Wikipedia; it will change your life!) so I was excited to hear it and Toyota name-checked on my visit to Fox & Geese. They are, for example, tracking the Overall Equipment Effectiveness (OEE) metric, and aiming to nudge that above 80%. Of course they benchmark themselves against other Pernod Ricard facilities. They are not the best yet but they mean to be.

Holding inventory is one of the classic signs of waste in Lean. It's just depreciating, tied up capital. They say at Fox & Geese that they turn over their warehouse contents 29 times a year. Good as that is, they see themselves moving away from warehousing towards a more temporary staging of product. In other words, they want to assemble truck loads directly from the bottling line without putting the goods through the warehouse.

Empty bottles are particularly bulky. Hewing closely to the Lean philosophy, they hold only a 6-hour supply of glass at Fox & Geese. Such a tight supply chain can only be implemented by working closely with suppliers. You would typically involve them when designing your production processes and give them real-time access to production data. It's a partnership. We were told that suppliers, like Smurfit and Quinn, are regularly on-site.

From Ireland to the World

Both Midleton and Fox & Geese have the same sense of calm efficiency I observedat Toyota. I can imagine the complex choreography of producing so many different products off the one line. I know that millions of units are being produced. I can even see it right in front of me. But the machine is so well-oiled, the workers so relaxed and in control, that it's still like magic.

Thanks to this operation, people all over the world can enjoy Irish whiskey and know something important about Ireland. Seeing the industrial-scale processes behind this just makes me appreciate the business, and the whiskey, all the more.

I would like to thank Michael Tracey, Head of Bottling Operations, and the rest of the team at Fox & Geese for generously sharing what they do with us. Thank you also to David Byrne and Liam Donegan of Irish Distillers for arranging the visit, accompanying us around the plant and, not least, bringing us for a wonderful dinner and whiskey tasting at the Old Jameson Distillery afterwards. We were truly spoiled. http://www.liquidirish.com/2012/04/irish-distillers-bottling-plant.html

" they export their bottles of Jameson wrapped so tightly together that there is noneed for padding between the bottles.http://www.liquidirish.com/2011/01/bulk-or-bottled.html

" Jameson 18 Years old Master Selection

Picture used with kind permission of Irisch Lifestyle GmbHFor this blend, Irish Distillers' Master Blender Dr. Barry Walsh handpicked 3 different types of very old Whiskeys which had laid down for 18 to 23 years in Ex-Oloroso Sherry casks in Midleton's Warehouses.

The selection included Hogsheads (250 litres) of smooth medium Pot Still, large Butts (500 litres) of rich, full-bodied Pot Still, as well as Hogsheads of rare lighter whiskey.

These selected casks were brought together, and the whiskey was then left to 'marry' and settle in American bourbon barrels, thus imparting additional maturityand complexity.

Only 8,000 bottles have been produced.http://www.potstill.de/jameson4.htm

" Jameson was first bottled in 1968 when Bow Street Distillery was already part ofthe Irish Distillers Group.

A Pure Pot Still Whiskey in the beginning, this is now a blend of equal shares of Pot Still and Grain Whiskeys distilled in Midleton. Around 10 per cent of the casks used for this Whiskey are Ex-Sherry.

After they had taken over IDG in 1988, Groupe Pernod-Ricard decided to put all their marketing efforts into Jameson and Bushmills. As a result, Jameson now accounts for nearly 75 per cent of all Irish Whiskey sales.http://www.potstill.de/jameson1.htm

"Redbreast first saw the light of day in 1939, when it was introduced by Gilbey Vintners of Ireland. Gilbey used Pot Still Whiskey from Bow Street Distillery, and the receipe was ⅔ Ex-Sherry, and ⅓ Ex-Bourbon Casks.

Redbreast was almost exclusively sold in Ireland.

Bow Street Distillery closed in 1971, and the Gilbey stock ran out in 1985.

The famous brand was later relaunched by Irish Distillers Group as their only Single "Pure Pot Still Whiskey" aged 12 years.

The present Redbreast is produced in Midleton, Co. Cork, and comes mostly from Ex-Bourbon Casks and a few Ex-Sherry.

Redbreast is described by Jim Murray as a marvellous, perfect After-Dinner Whiskey.http://www.potstill.de/redbreast1.htm

"JQ-058548 that appear on every bottle of Jameson?

At the IWS Tullamore Dew tasting last year, John Quinn, then IDL employee, now Tullamore Dew "brand ambassador", intimated (he may even have said) that JQ came from his initials. I can't remember the exact circumstances, it may have been the initial of the employee checking the batch.http://forum.irishwhiskeysociety.com/viewtopic.php?f=22&t=1420&p=13895&hilit=bottle+numbers

http://youtu.be/qQf-TvRK6Pk