The Powerscourt Distillery Celebrates Six Major Accolades. Latest on Cork Whiskey Fest 2023!

press release 

The Powerscourt Distillery Celebrates Six Major Accolades already for 2023!

 

There were two wins in the World Whiskies Awards Irish Category, 

  as well as further Highly Commended awards in the Icons of Whiskey Ireland.

2023 WORLD WHISKIES AWARDS – IRISH CATEGORY

Estate Series 2: The Italian Gardens:  Gold Medal and Category winner

Distillery Select:  Gold Medal and Category winner

Irish Whiskey Brand Ambassador of the Year - Highly Commended Alan Malone

Paul Corbett takes home Master Distiller/Master Blender

The Powerscourt Distillery Visitor Centre wins Best Visitor Attraction

Santina Kennedy is Highly Commended for Campaign Innovator

        

Wicklow’s Powerscourt Distillery, a leading producer of premium whiskey, is proud to announce that it has won six major awards already for 2023. At the 2023 World Whiskies Awards, they took home two Irish category wins, while at the 2023 Icons of Whiskey Ireland Awards, they also received another “Highly Commended” award for “Irish Whiskey category Brand ambassador 2023” going to Alan Malone (European Sales Manager for the Distillery). These prestigious awards recognise the distillery’s commitment to producing top-quality spirits that are crafted with care and attention to detail.

 

“We are delighted with these awards that reflect the hard work and dedication of the team since we started in 2018. Two whiskeys that reflect the best of our home, County Wicklow, both in concept and collaboration. We look forward to these whiskeys taking their deserved place in the World’s best whiskey competition at the end of March.” John Cashman said Head of NPD & Brand at The Powerscourt Distillery.

 

These recent accolades add to the hat trick of awards at won National level last November for the – Powerscourt Distillery Visitor Centre  - Best Visitor Attraction accepted by Gerry Ginty COO, Paul Corbett as Master Distiller/Master Blender, and a Highly Commended for Campaign Innovator accepted by Santina Kennedy – Food & Beverage Specialist at Powerscourt Distillery.

 

The Powerscourt Distillery awards come as no surprise to those in the industry who have long recognised the distillery’s commitment to excellence. The Distillery is looking forward to an exciting year ahead in 2023!

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Cork Whiskey Fest 2023.      

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Mitchell & Son In Cork Whiskey Fest "Spot"light. Fercullen Now In USA!

Mitchell & Son 

In Cork Whiskey Fest "Spot"light 

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Fercullen Now In USA!

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The famous Mitchell & Son bottles will be the subject of a masterclass during the Cork Whiskey Fest in March. Details below but first we sample the original Green Spot, the current fill in my Bradley's Hip Flask.

Mitchell & Son Green Spot Single Pot Still Irish Whiskey, 40% ABV

Widely available at c. €65.00

Fresh and gentle aromatics, apple and elderflower plus honey notes. Light fruit notes on the mellow palate, exotic such as mango and pineapple, more closer to home like apple, and honey too.  Mellow yes but quite full bodied with a light spicy and lingering finish from this gorgeous pale-gold coloured whiskey, the original Green Spot.

This is now produced in Midleton. That was not always the case: The Green Spot name originated from the Mitchell family’s practice (started around 1900) of marking casks of different ages with a daub of coloured paint. Originally there was a ‘Blue Spot’, ‘Red Spot’ and even a ‘Yellow Spot’, but Green Spot emerged as their most popular whiskey and is one of the few “whiskey bonder brands” to survive to modern day.

Single Pot Still whiskey is unique to Ireland in general and to the Midleton Distillery, Co. Cork, in particular, and is regarded as the quintessential style of Irish whiskey. Made from a mash of malted and unmalted barley and then triple distilled in traditional copper pot stills, Pot Still whiskeys are characterised by full, complex flavours and a wonderful, creamy mouthfeel.

Cork Whiskey Fest. I've reserved my ticket for the Spot Masterclass, details.....

You can learn more, much more, about the Spots and whiskey in general at Cork Whiskey Fest 2023. 

On the Saturday (Mar 25th), Midleton legend Ger Garland and Brand Ambassador Matthew Smith guide you through a selection of Spot whiskey along with their finishing wines, for this stellar masterclass. Mitchell and Sons Wine & Spirits Merchants are the sole remaining licenced bonder with Irish Distillers. Their wine finished single pot still Irish whiskeys are a pillar in Irish Whiskey. 

The festival will take place from 24th – 26th March across Cork City’s historic Victorian Quarter. Centred on MacCurtain St, CWF 2023 will concentrate whiskey fans on 1 street, for 3 days for plenty of craic and fantastic whiskey experiences. You will be hosted by many Festival Friends, in the many bars and rooms of The VQ, that will make Cork the epicentre of Irish Whiskey for one weekend. Come join the many masterclasses and events that CWF 2023 has to offer, on the tickets page.

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Fercullen Now In USA!

 

 Powerscourt Distillery is delighted to announce that the US arm of Zamora Company will import, sell, and market Fercullen in the market, effective immediately.

“We at the Powerscourt Distillery have waited until the right time and crucially finding the right partner before we launched Fercullen Irish Whiskey into the US market and we are in a great position to appoint Zamora Company USA as our national importers,” Ryan Stapleton, Powerscourt Distillery's global head of sales.

Fercullen Falls, Fercullen Single Malt, 15 Year Old Fercullen Whiskey, and limited edition Fercullen 21 Year Old, will be available in the States.

“As we continue to grow our world-class spirits and wines in the US, Irish whiskey has long been at the top of our list of categories to strengthen our portfolio, and Fercullen from the Powerscourt Distillery has always been our top choice,” said Andrew Stewart, global brand manager at Zamora Company USA.

We look forward to bringing our core Fercullen and limited release Irish whiskeys to the US in 2023 and to working closely with the excellent team at Zamora Company USA in the years to come.

The Whiskey Bulletin. Review of new West Cork 7-year Single Malt plus news from Powerscourt, Cork Whiskey Fest,Blackwater Distillery, Killowen

New Whiskey Review

Plus news from Powerscourt, Cork Whiskey Fest,Blackwater Distillery, Killowen

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West Cork 7 Year Single Malt 46% ABV

Chalk this down as another good one from the West Cork Distillery in Skibbereen.

This, one of the darker ones, has quite an inviting nose, subtle notes of almond and red berries. It boasts a marvellous palate, really easy to enjoy, packed with agreeable fruit sensations (including citrus and almond), hints too of its years in sherry cask, smooth malt and just a little, if lively, spice. And there’s no let-up, nor let down either, in the long and pleasant finish. An immediate thumbs up for this smooth fruity whiskey from the west which was finished in bourbon casks.

Expect to pay around €60.00 

This is the first aged Pot Still from Ireland's largest independent distillery! West Cork Distillers was formed in 2003 by childhood friends, John O’Connell (left), Ger McCarthy and Denis McCarthy at a time when it made very little economic sense to do so. "The early years were far from glamorous, operating in a room at the back of Denis’s house in Union Hall with two small stills we bought from a schnapps producer in Switzerland. In 2014 we moved to a new distillery in Skibbereen

We currently operate out of a 12.5 acre site on Marsh Road.... With distributors across the globe, our award winning West Cork Irish Whiskey is now sold in almost 70 countries. Case sales have risen considerably every year for the past six years and our staff has grown to over 80 people, with the majority based locally in West Cork.

We want to make Irish whiskey accessible. We will continue to expand our operation but maintain our Irish ownership and stay true to our West Cork heritage. The opening of the new distillery makes us the largest, wholly Irish owned distillery in the country. Meanwhile, more jobs, new products and additional warehouses are being added to meet rising demand."

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press releases

And they have other tempting options also.

More info here

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press release

Cork Whiskey Fest

BLACKWATER DISTILLERY MASTERCLASS

WHEN: SATURDAY MARCH 25, 2023 @12:00PM WHERE:CORK CITY'S VICTORIAN QUARTER More details here ************** press release Killowen Distillery have nurtured many different expressions of poitín since their first days of distilling, unfortunately these beautiful products are too often in short supply. Thankfully Killowen have now created a core product in larger 70cl bottles, most fitting of the current poitín revival.   ‘Pangur – The White Cat’ is fun, dynamic, colourful and versatile with flavours spanning from sophisticated whiskey aromas to beautiful mescal notes, this poitín is a fitting response to Ireland’s unique, culinary beverage. As whiskey’s mummy, this is a beverage category we should all be very proud of. Pangur draws its inspiration from the fun ancient poem ‘Pangur Ban’ written by a man from here, on a remote German island in the 9th Century about his relationship with his little furry friend - we will let you guys enjoy the fun history search.   Pangur is a 50/50 combination of two spirits, one from either side of Carlingford Lough, the combination offers both potstill spice and notes of mescal creating a beautiful spirit perfectly suited for finishing in some well sourced oak in Killowen Distillery.   The three Pangurs we have include:  Bourbon wood rested offers notes of citrus fruit, and similar to mescal a hint of smoke and light earthiness Stout wood rested offers some of the above but this time with chocolate, creamy and a silky texture PX wood rested dried fruit notes of fig and raisin layered on top of the afore mentioned citrus Just to note: current legislation forbids the mention of the words ‘cask’ or ‘ageing’ in marketing material for our native spirit poitín, something we hope will change in the future. Pangur is currently being released into the wild this week onwards, just ask any quality local off licenses North or South to get a bottle in stock, it will also be available from our online partners. RRP: €48.95 & £39.95 **************

Teeling Blackpitts Peated Single Malt. A Whiskey Fest in Cork next March. Cocktail Competition from Killowen

Teeling Blackpitts Peated Single Malt. A Whiskey Fest in Cork next March.  Cocktail Competition from Killowen. ********* Teeling Blackpitts Peated Single Malt 46% ABV I stood up quickly. Had just smelled smoke. Where was the source? Looked at the sockets. Though it wasn’t that kind of smoke. Opened the windows. Nothing burning out front. Back door. Nil again. Back in. Saw the empty Liberator bottle. The empty glass. The empty jigger. Smoke source! On my armchair table. So, sometimes, the old nose gets the aromas. The Liberator was the Port 'n Peat. No problem getting the aromas with this Teeling Blackpitts, their first peated whiskey. They are dominated by peat though I’d call it turf (which is a whole lot different to BBQ smoke). You really have to probe well with the proboscis to smell anything else under the blanket of peaty smog. The turf continues impressively on the palate, reinforcing the spice, and there’s a sweetness too, presumably from the Sauternes casks. Yet, the maturation somehow has rounded down the smoke effect and the finish is a good balance between the turf and the casks. That Liberator Storehouse Special Port ’n’  Peat (it's deliberately limited) had the properties to edge me along the old smoky road, but this one makes me pause. Not too sure how far I want to travel beyond that smoke threshold. There may be one particular reason for encouragement and I have seen it mentioned in a few places. It seems the triple distillation process that Teeling employed here (and normally employ) ”reduces some of the medicinal character you would get from a traditional Scottish Peated Single Malt…”. And then I had Take Two where, without the initial smoke-shock of the first tasting, myself and Blackpitts got on much better together! Hope for the future then! The Blackpitts is a non chill filtered, peated, single malt whiskey, aged in a combination of ex-Bourbon and ex-Sauternes wine casks. As you probably know, Sauternes is a highly regarded sweet wine from the Bordeaux region though there is a huge array of prices, ranging from under twenty to many hundred euro per bottle. They don’t say if the casks used here had been filled with the more expensive or the less expensive Sauternes! * I got mine via the Hip Flask Service at Bradleys of Cork. The general retail price per bottle seems to be in the mid to high 50s. ********* Subscribe to www.corkwhiskeyfest.com for ticket & event updates ********* Killowen Pangur Poitín Cocktail Competition

Having declared '2022 - The Year of Poitín' Killowen have decided to run a competition to help promote poitín as a premium spirit for quality cocktails. Pangur Poitín, which you will use for the competition, has been developed with the cocktail makers of today in mind. So, are you a budding mixologist or looking to add to your experienced repertoire of cocktails, and want to win £500 in cash? Then this is the competition for you!

Details for the competition can be found on our website on the following link:   Killowen Pangur Poitín Cocktail Competition Be sure to share this with any budding cocktail makers you know and best of luck to those entering. We can't wait to see what you come up with. *********

Powers to all our Friends. Cork Whiskey Fest at Sober Lane

Powers to all our Friends

Cork Whiskey Fest at Sober Lane

The Powers be with you! Pic via Sober Lane

Great to meet up with the Powers Family at Sober Lane as part of the Cork Whiskey Festival. Powers Ambassador Michael Carr introduced us to Powers Gold Label, Three Swallow Release, Signature Release and John’s Lane Release, quite a stellar team from the venerable whiskey family.

Cheers

Powers first made their mark on the Dublin whiskey as the 18th century closed and soon their concentration on quality saw them become the biggest in the capital. 

Quality was always to the fore and it was because of concerns that the “brand” was being damaged that led to the founder’s grandson deciding to bottle their own, rather than have it bottled exclusively by middlemen or publicans. And this was where the gold label started; it indicated that the whiskey inside was bottled by the distillery.

That, by the way, was in 1866, about 100 years before Jameson bottled. Powers were always innovative and their release of the miniature bottle, the “Baby Powers”, was a world first.

The current Gold Label was our first sip of the night. Michael advised “when smelling, keep mouth slightly open”. Spice, sweetness and oak and the barley of course all combine to make this whiskey a real pleasure.

Partners in Powers

By the 1880s, Power were very popular. They were great record keepers too and most of the old recipes survive and that made it easy for Irish Distillers in Midleton (where Powers is now produced) to recreate the old styles. The Three Swallows is triple distilled (like all Irish whiskeys) and is a relaxed and gentler whiskey, according to Michael. It is a true pot still style, smooth and complex, the intrinsic Irish style. The Swallows, by the way, are the whiskey equivalent of the stars on a brandy bottle.

Now we were moving on up to the Signature Release. “Very delicate on the nose… very active..zesty..on the palate..you know you're drinking whiskey”. It has a higher abv of 46%, “one of the reasons for that lovely zip on the tongue…we used only 2nd and 3rd fill bourbon barrels for this.”  He emphasised that this was regarded as a grown-ups whiskey, maybe even old-fashioned “but now becoming modern again!”.

Then it was the turn of a favourite of mine, the John's Lane Release, “full bodied, spice upfront, followed by vanilla, honey and dried apricot”. John’s Lane is where the Powers Distillery was in Dublin and it was first made here by Barry Crockett in the 1970s. “This is a big whiskey, big on flavour. By the way, the 12 years refers to the youngest whiskey in the bottle.”

While the gold label is a blend, the other three are Single Pot Still Whiskey, Irish of course! Having done the talk, Michael showed he could walk the walk as he demonstrated his cocktail making skills by making an Old Fashioned. He had a one big tip. “In cocktails, don’t use your expensive whiskeys! Use the Gold Label. It has a lovely sweetness to balance the sours.”

Taking a closer look!

Then there was an exodus to the smoking area to try out the Punch Cigars along with a 12 year old Powers Gold Label. I split with the smokes back in 1994. I did of course sample the whiskey, another family gem. Like the opening Gold Label, this is a blend with a good amount of pot still content and some very old whiskeys as well. Heard that it is going off the market in the near future so best to get your hands on a bottle or two before then.

Big thanks to Powers, to Michael, and to Dee and crew at Sober Lane. Not alone did we enjoy the whiskey but they came up with trays of delicious sliders as the enjoyable evening came to a close. Here’s to the next Cork Whiskey festival!

Montenotte Hotel Whiskey Battle

Montenotte Hotel Whiskey Battle

Let battle commence!

Last night I took part in a “battle”, a whiskey battle that is, in the Montenotte Hotel. It was all part of the Cork Whiskey Festival. There is a terrific view over the city from the hotel's bar but I was concentrating on the three beauties in front of me.

They were staging three “battles” in all, each involving an Irish, a Scotch and an American Whiskey. I could have had a Jameson, Glenfiddich, and Bulleit Bourbon for €15.00 or a Red Breast 15 year Old, Laphroaig 10 year old Single Malt and Maker’s 46 for €35.00.

But I picked the €25.00 trio of Green Spot Single Pot Still Irish Whiskey, Bowmore 12 Year Old and the Knob Creek Bourbon. There was no further info available as info sheets hadn't turned up.

So, with an open mind, if an amateur one as regards whiskey, I got down to work, a glass of water at the side. Tasted the three in the above order and was quite pleased with the Irish and the Scotch. The initial meeting with the Knob Creek, by Jim Beam, seemed fine but I found something of an alcohol burn on the finish.

Tried them all neat again, this time with an emphasis on the aromas. And that's when the peat began to bother me. As Henry VIII said about one of the ladies he was about to marry: “I like her not!”.  And, there was to be no cure for it, only a divorce!

But there was a cure for the Bourbon: a few drops of good old Cork water brought a very acceptable smoothness to the finish. Took my time after that and finished off all three. 

And the final verdict? I declare the Green Spot, a superb whiskey, finished in a selection of ex-bourbon (ironically) and ex-sherry casks, and so well balanced, the winner of this particular battle. Slainte!