LET ' S TALK ABOUT WHISKY
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LET ' S TALK ABOUT WHISKY
by David Beaufort-Dysart
Hello , fellow ‘ whisk ( e ) y lovers ’ lets raise a glass to the fastest growing Spirit in the world , that is Irish Whiskey .
Having left the shores of bonny Scotland , we now reach land on the Emerald Isle ! Lets start with the spelling , why the ‘ E ’?, its to do with the translation of Whisky in Irish and Scottish dialect , in Irish Whisky ends ’ ey ’ in Scottish it ends with a ‘ y ’ now we can move on …
Irish Whiskey dates back as far as the twelfth century and was one of the earliest distilled drinks . Irish Monks who were apt at distilling perfumes learnt from their travels in Europe used a modified version to make spirits . The spirit produced back then was obviously quite different from what we drink today , they added different aromatic herbs . In fact , if you grab some Irish Mist ( an Irish Whiskey based liquor ) you would not be far off from drinking something similar ! Though a lot more palatable I would imagine !
Never found a four-leaf clover , however I did discover my newfound affection for this lovely Irish spirit on a trip to Northern Ireland a few years back . As my partner Jane and I headed out of Belfast , we drove along the stunning Causeway Coastal Road , stopping off to see the awe-inspiring Giants Causeway . These 40,000 basalt hexagonal columns are a sight to see !
The next awe-inspiring trip was just down the road to visit the famous Old Bushmills Distillery ( this is a perfect place to start on our Irish Whiskey trail ) located in County Antrim Bushmills is said to be the world ’ s oldest licensed distillery , note the 1608 embossed on all bottles . As we know way back then there was a lot of illicit Whiskey being made , if it was produced by a registered distiller it was named ‘ parliament whiskey ’ whilst the back door stuff was known as ‘ poteen .’
Irish whiskey was at one time the most popular spirit in the world and boasted up to twenty-eight different distilleries , however sales and popularity reduced significantly and by the late sixties there where only two remaining distilleries , Old Middleton ( now new !) and Bushmills . After a resurgence there are now thirty-two distilleries in operation , with many more in the planning stage .
Bushmills produce a range of whiskeys , in addition to the popular white label , sometimes called white bush :
Black Bush : Features malt whiskey aged in casks previously used for Spanish Oloroso sherry .
• Bushmills 10 Year Single Malt : Combines malt whiskeys aged at least 10 years in American bourbon or Oloroso sherry casks .
• Bushmills 16 Year Single Malt : Malt whiskeys aged at least 16 years in American bourbon barrels or Spanish Oloroso sherry butts are mixed before finishing in Port pipes for a few months .
• Bushmills 21 Year Single Malt : after 19 years , both sherry -cask-aged and bourbon are combined , then finished in Madeira drums for two years .
Before we taste let us have a recap on how I taste , again try this method or ' go your own way '!
• The Glass : ideally , I recommend you use a Glencairn glass , I ( and many ) see it as the official whisk ( e ) y tasting glass .
• Pour and nose : add 20-25 ml of whiskey to the glass , give it a gentle swirl then waft the glass from side to side under the nose ( smelling lightly is the key ) you need to get past the first hit of alcohol , then look for the character of your dram , try and focus on first impressions ; fruit ? floral ? woody ? smoke ? peat ?
In 2008 , the bank of Ireland added an illustration of the old Bushmills Distillery on to their banknotes in Northern Ireland , buy a bottle of Bushmills and it ' s money well spent !
The new bottle design features a hexagonal ‘ punt ’ ( indented bottom of the bottle ) this a shout out to the big man ’ s causeway . The River Bush , which is a source for water flows over these amazing basalt columns .
Bushmills 10-year-old Single Malt Whiskey
• Colour : medium , amber gold
• Nose : dried fruit , citrus notes , vanilla .
• Taste : chocolate , honey
• Finish : crisp , clean , gentle
Bushmills say that their ‘ Whiskey is the oldest because it ’ s the best , not best because it ’ s the oldest ’. For me , this is like the classic Smoked Salmon , which incidentally pairs perfectly well with a glass of Bushmills !
Until next time ... Slàinté
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