Undisclosed Ireland

With all the nascent demand for Irish booze, I have to say I’m a little surprised to see a 14 year old single malt given the octave treatment by Atom Brands for their Darkness range – but then again, with Boutique-y Whisky in the stable, there’s already an outlet for this type of thing eau naturale. This unspecified Irish whisky (though being single malt should help you hone in) consists of 227 bottles and has been finished in an oloroso octave before being bottles at 57.6% ABV (cask strength? If not – surely pretty close to it).

This will release – which I believe is coming to retailers shortly costs £99.95 for a 50cl bottle.

Day 14 of the 2019 Boutique-y Whisky Advent calendar offers up batch 2 of Irish Single Malt #1 13 year old. We reviewed this back in 2018 so are presenting an updated version of that original post for you today. Batch 2 batch consists of 2,200 bottles delivered at 48.4% ABV. They’re available for £58.95 from Master of Malt (a little over a pound cheaper than this time last year). Whilst the distillery this whiskey originates from is undisclosed - being an Irish single malt, the choices, in terms of the style and age, limit this to either Cooley or Bushmills. I’d certainly err towards the latter.

2014’s Irish Whiskey Technical File has undoubtedly helped the sector achieve an impressive growth that 20 years ago seemed all but a pipedream. However, as a document the Technical File (“Product Specification Sheet”) has been both extolled and vilified in equal measure. As a standard set-in stone, it has allowed Irish whiskey a much-needed consistency on which to build its modern-day renaissance. But as a specification it has presented a number of historical imprecisions and likewise reduced the available space for distilling innovation. But following a resubmission of the File to the European Commission back in September 2021 – upcoming amendments may well help the sector not only embrace the broadness it needs to thrive, but to also better reflect its distilling past.

However we taste whisky we do so through some form of lens. That lens can vary greatly - from a single contemplative dram, through to a tasting flight in a bar, all the way to a skinful of progressively unmemorable malt moments at a whisky show. But increasingly, the concept of the whisky Advent calendar is to my mind an entirely viable method for budding enthusiasts to undertake a near month-long whisky exploration.

The Dramble has been participating in Boutique-y Advent for some years now – a month long fest of the multiplicity of whisky. But back in the calendar’s earliest days, the selection then felt quite arbitrary at times. Still tasty things of course, but rather the hodgepodge that presumably Atom Brands had left over from previous bottlings. Fast-forward to the last few editions and it’s clear that Boutique-y has realised that whilst an Advent calendar is one method for shifting unsold stock – it’s also an incredible powerful promotion for selling full-sized bottles too. Like what you’ve found behind door number x? Well it’s December – the ideal time to be gifting your loved ones and treating yourself. Surprisingly, an Advent calendar might not just be for Christmas.

Irish whiskey is experiencing something of renaissance. There are over thirty new distilleries in various stages of planning or construction across the Emerald Isle. It’s hard to imagine that in the mid-1980’s there was only two distilleries in operation – Bushmills in the north and Midleton in the south. The rebirth can be traced back to the late 80’s with the refitting of Cooley distillery and it’s move to double distillation rather than the triple pot still distillation practiced at Bushmills. The fruits of this endeavour have taken a fair few years to truly flourish, but by 2014 the number of operating distilleries had risen to eight. By 2016 it had nearly doubled again to seventeen. 

I’m as guilty as the next person. Despite an undying faith that I’ll get round to drinking it all ‘someday’, I really should come round to the reality that I own more whisky than I’m ever going to consume. Stockpiling is something of an occupational hazard when you both write about whisky and work for a distillery – but nevertheless the sheer volume of ‘drinkers’ I own makes a mockery of the moniker. It’s not going to happen. And I’m far from alone.