The Dividend: March 2023 – Irish Whiskey

Different Types of Irish Whiskey:

Single Malt Irish Whiskey

–     Whiskey that is aged at least three years and distilled from a mash of only malted barley at a single distillery.

Single Pot Still Irish Whiskey

–      Single (or pure) pot still whiskey uses a mix of malted and unmalted barley that must be at least 30% of each barley, up to 5% other cereals, and distilled in a pot still at a single distillery.

Single Grain Irish Whiskey

–     Whiskey that is at least three years old and a single distillery using any cereal grains including malted or unmalted barley.

Irish Blend Whiskey

–     Mixture of any grains of two or more styles of Irish whiskey. There are no specific names to differentiate between blends made from various malts, grains, stills or multiple distilleries.

History:

Shortly after the conquest of Ireland by Henry II in 1170, the English noted that Irish monks were in the habit of making and drinking aqua vitae or water of life. In Irish Gallic, the term was Uisce Beatha, pronounced ish-keh bah-ha. The term was eventually corrupted into whisky by the English (Forbes, Joseph V. Miscallef, 2018).

The use of un-malted barley originally came as a tax dodge tactic. The Irish didn’t want to pay tax that the British had imposed on malted barley – thus creating the single pot still whiskey with the use of malted and un-malted barley (Whizzky, 2018).

Difference between single malt Irish whiskey and single pot still Irish whiskey:

–      Single malt refers to the use of malted barley from one distillery. Whereas single pot still is malted and un-malted barley from one distillery (Whizzky, 2018)

How Irish Whiskey is Made:

The Irish Whiskey Act of 1980 defines the basic requirements for Irish whiskey which includes:

–      Be made from a mash of malted barley, plus other cereal grains (optional).

–      Be mashed, fermented, distilled to no more than 94.8% ABV, and matured in wooden casks, such as

oak, not exceeding 700 liters for a minimum of three years in the Republic of Ireland and/or Northern Ireland.

–      Not contain additives other than water and caramel coloring (e150a).

–      Retain the characteristics of its raw materials (in other words, smell and taste like whiskey).

–      Be bottled at no less than 40% ABV (Whiskey Advocate, 2017).

Main difference between Irish and American whiskey:

–      Years – American is minimum of 2 years while Irish is a minimum of 3 years.

–      Grain – American = mostly corn, rye, and wheat. Irish = mostly barley

The Sexton Single Malt (sourced from Bushmills) Proof: 80 Age: minimum of 4 years Mashbill: 100% malted barley SRP: $25-35 Tullamore D.E.W. 12 Proof: 80 Age: 12 years Mashbill: blend of single malt, grain, and single pot still SRP: $50 Fun Facts:

Redbreast Lustau (Distilled at Midleton) Proof: 92 Age: 9-12 years Mashbill: Malted & un-Malted barley SRP: $85

The Sexton:

–     The Sexton Single Malt Irish Whiskey is triple distilled from 100% malted Irish barley using copper pot stills. Aged in ex-oloroso sherry butts for a minimum of four years. Bottled in a unique, solid

black hexagonal bottle at 40% ABV. Available in the US beginning November 2017 (Distiller).

–     Aged in a mix of first- to fourth-fill Oloroso Sherry butts (Richard Thomas, the Whiskey Reviewer).

–     A creation of Alex Thomas, a distiller with 13 years experience, one of the very few women in Ireland to claim the title of Master Blender (Richard Thomas, the Whiskey Reviewer).

Tullamore D.E.W. 12:

–     The 12 Year Special Reserve stays true to the original bottling in that is a blend of three kinds of whiskey: single malt, grain, and single pot still. In this case, the bottling is largely comprised of the single malt and pot still.

–     The whiskey is aged in a mix of both bourbon and sherry casks, some up to 15 years.

–     DEW or D. E. W. are the initials of one of the greatest distillers Ireland has ever had, his name was Daniel Edmund Williams.

Redbreast Lustau:

–     Initially matured in traditional bourbon and sherry casks for a period of 9-12 years. It is then finished for 1 additional year in first fill hand selected sherry butts that have been seasoned with the finest Oloroso sherry from the prestigious Bodegas Lustau in Jerez.

–     After a thorough revamp, and the use of Midleton Distillery, Redbreast relaunched in 1991.

–     The brand initially founded in 1857 under the name W & A Gilbey. In 1874, the company held in stock over 300,000 gallons of whiskey. The first official reference to the name “Redbreast” appeared in 1912 – refers to the bird, Robin Redbreast (attributed to the Chairmen of Gilbey’s, who was an avid bird-fancier). – Redbreastwhiskey.com