Brands that are well known for their Single Malt production are Bushmills, Teeling, Waterford, Dingle, Cooley or The Irishman. Interestingly enough, in the recent renaissance in Irish Whiskey the re-introduction of peated Irish whiskey is mostly found in the Single Malt category and it’s due to its peat smoke being one way to halt germination of the malted grains.
There also must be at least 30% of both malted and unmalted barley. The use of both malted and unmalted barley give Pot Still whiskey its distinctive defining flavours, spiced profile and thick buttery smooth mouthfeel. The most famous distillery producing the Pot still style is Midleton which during the dark days of Irish whiskey consolidated all the Pot Still brands under one roof, which also allowed Midleton to dictate what the Pot Still Technical File would be. This file is currently undergoing a challenge by a large group of brands and distillers that want more variance allowed to align with the historical and traditional Pot Still whiskeys from Irish Whiskey History. No matter the style, one interesting aspect of the Irish whiskey category is that all of the different types can either be triple or double distilled which again will create different flavour profiles. As you can state for yourself, Irish whiskey is full of variance in style and flavours. This category is rising in popularity and exploding with many choices so I highly encourage whiskey fans to explore all the styles, including the heritage brands and newer established distilleries to find out which ones you like the most!
In part 3 of this 4 piece series about Irish whiskey, the next stop is all
about the multiple styles that make up the category. Grab a dram and get
ready for some Irish Whiskey schooling as Sean takes us into a deep dive.
The Endless Possibilities of Irish Whiskey Styles BY SEAN KINCAID
Throughout Irish whiskey’s vast and rich story there have been multiple styles and categories. The history dates so far back that some of the illicit and unrefined concoctions of yore, may have even included inedible ingredients that definitely won’t be found in any documented technical file. But what has lasted and stood the test of time are four classic styles of whiskey including the one Irish whiskey is most famous for, Single Pot Still. Let’s start with the most recognized one across the globe = Blended Irish Whiskey. The definition is pretty simple, it means two or more of the other categories are mixed or blended together in some ratio. Great examples include: Tullamore Dew, Jameson, Bushmills, and Proper Twelve which also happen to be the top four global selling brands of Irish whiskey. Some of these companies have elevated releases that incorporate the other styles in their portfolios but their core releases are all the blended style. Most commonly these consist of Grain Whiskey and Single Malt Whiskey in various ratios but there are examples of brands using all three styles together in blends as well as blending Malt Whiskey and Pot Still together.
As mentioned above, Single Grain Whiskey is one category and it’s the one that offers the biggest variance in flavours due to the allowance of certain ingredients. This style include almost all grains (wheat, maize, rye, oats etc.) as well as unmalted barley and even malted barley when run through a continuous still (not a Pot Still). Some of the powerhouse distillers in Ireland that excel at producing Single Grain Whiskey are: Cooley, Great Northern Distillery, West Cork, and Royal Oak Distillery. The biggest difference in Irish Grain Whiskey over its Scottish cousin is that in Ireland the producers are maturing the grain whiskey in first rate, top quality casks. This allows Single Grain whiskey from the Emerald Isle to be released at a younger age than that of the traditional Scottish whisky. The sibling to Single Grain Whiskey is of course - Single Malt. Probably the most widely produced of all the styles in terms of different brands/distilleries making it and it’s the easiest to define since it can only be made with water, yeast and 100% malted barley. Even so, the difference in flavours can be vastly different depending on production methods and barrel ageing/finishing.
Have I saved the best for last? Single Pot Still whiskey! Most popular even though it’s produced by the smallest number of distilleries. In its simplest terms, Single Pot Still is made using a mash of both malted and unmalted barley and distilled in copper pot stills. Currently, the Technical File for Single Pot Still Whiskey, allows a third grain as long as it’s under 5% of the entire mash content.
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the whisky explorer magazine
the whisky explorer magazine
SUMMER 2024
SUMMER 2024
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