The Gentleman Magazine Issue 10 | August 2018 | Page 46

TWO WORLD-FIRST ‘METHOD AND MADNESS’
EXPRESSIONS
ADDED TO THE
EXPERIMENTAL IRISH
SPIRITS RANGE
Irish Distillers, makers of the world’s most well-known
and successful Irish whiskeys, has added two new and
experimental, limited edition Irish whiskeys to its METHOD
AND MADNESS range; Single Pot Still Irish Whiskey Finished
in Virgin Hungarian Oak and a 28-year-old Ruby Port Pipe
Single Cask Single Pot Still Irish Whiskey. First launched in
2017, METHOD AND MADNESS aims to push the boundaries
of Irish whiskey through innovative releases, harnessing the
creativity and fresh thinking of the masters and apprentices in
Midleton Distillery.
In a world first for Irish whiskey, METHOD AND MADNESS
Single Pot Still Irish Whiskey Finished in Virgin Hungarian
Oak has been finished in virgin oak felled in the Carpathian
Mountain range in the North East of Hungary, where volcanic
soils are best suited to the growing of Quercus Petraea.
Harvested in winter and air-dried for two years at the Kádár
sawmills in Tokaj, the tight grain of this exceptional wood
slowly imparts complex compounds and subtle flavours into
the whiskey during the finishing process. The whiskey, a single
pot still distillate, was first matured in a combination of first-fill
and re-fill American oak barrels, before finishing in the virgin
Hungarian oak for 11 months.
Kevin O’Gorman, Master of Maturation at Midleton Distillery,
commented: “Our quest for uncommon casks has led us all
over the world. We were especially intrigued by the Quercus
Petraea from North East Hungary and the unique properties
that it could add to our flavour repertoire as whiskey makers.
At Midleton Distillery over the past few years, we have been
experimenting with Hungarian virgin oak casks – a trial and
error process that we are incredibly proud to have finally
mastered. The result is a new first for Irish whiskey that
continues to challenge perceptions of what the category can
be.”
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