Powers 100% Irish Rye Whiskey. On the shelves today! Latest on Cork Whiskey Fest.

Powers Launch their 100% Irish Rye Whiskey today. 

 Latest on Cork Whiskey Festival.

Powers Launch their 100% Irish Rye Whiskey 43.2% ABV, 

RRP €40.00, widely available

The world’s first 100% Irish rye whiskey is on shelves around the world today. The producers are happy: “Proudly honouring the pioneering spirit of Powers Irish Whiskey, this ground-breaking release uses 100% Irish rye for the first time ever. The result is Powers Irish Rye, a complex and flavourful Irish whiskey that is set to shake up the increasingly popular rye whiskey category.”

It appears in your glass as a warm bronze liquid. Aromas are complex, barbecued banana, cherries and vanilla along with spicy notes especially of clove, with pepper and ginger also in mix. The rye announces itself more in the mouth along with the banana and clove and waves of sweetness (sugar and vanilla). A relatively mild but very satisfactory experience in the palate is followed by something similar on the finish, the flavours smoother, the spices enhanced, as they mix in harmony and waltz for quite a while.

Didn’t quite finish the 100ml sample provided on the first go. Went back a second time and was even more impressed. This 100% Irish Rye Whiskey is 100% compatible with this palate. Very happy indeed with it and thrilled to be able “award” a Very Highly Recommended stamp!

A few years ago at the little Micil Distillery in Galway, Pádraic Ó Griallais told me the three conditions needed to become a proper drinker: É a ioc, é a ól, é a iompar  (Pay for it; drink it; carry it.) When it comes to this Powers, I could well meet all three - not too expensive, not too harsh (far from it), and easy to drink and carry! A bigs thumbs up for this breakthrough from Powers. Not every day are you going to come across a whiskey of this quality at such a reasonable price.

The launch of Powers Irish Rye is grounded in the heritage of the whiskey brand, as Carol Quinn, Archivist at Irish Distillers, uncovered. Old mash bills and recipes reveal that Powers experimented with rye over their history, shows how, as the scientific knowledge of distilling expanded throughout the 19th century, they continually strove to innovate with new techniques and processes.  

This new bottle is born from trials at Irish Distillers’ renowned Midleton Distillery in Cork, Ireland, Powers Irish Rye balances the trademark earthy, peppery character of rye with the sweet flavour profile imparted from maturation in a full repertoire of American oak – with virgin oak, first fill and refills in the cask mix.

Rye is mainly grown in northern European countries and used in bread and beer. Not easy to find a farm growing it in Ireland. But Powers persevered and commissioned the planting of rye crops. With a commitment to sustainable farming, the Cooney Furlong Farm in Co. Wexford supply 100% of the rye used in Powers Irish Rye. Located just a short distance from Edermine House, the ancestral home of the Powers family, the farm guarantees ongoing Irish rye supply for this world first release.

In an interview conducted by Royal Commission on whiskey back in 1908, the Powers ethos was best described by James Talbot Power, ‘At Powers, we are producers of flavours, not of spirits`.  They are proud to continue this Powers legacy in 2023. And it is indeed the flavours that catch the attention in this latest release.

Bottled at 43.2% ABV, Powers Irish Rye will be released from 20th February in the US, Ireland, Northern Ireland, Dublin Airport and online at PowersWhiskey.com, and via The Whisky Exchange in the UK in the coming months at RRP €40.

The whiskey can be drunk neat but should also catch the attention of mixologists and Powers have already proposed this recipe for a Classic Manhattan cocktail.

Manhattan cocktail

Ingredients: 50ml Powers Irish Rye, 25ml sweet vermouth, 1 dash aromatic bitters, 1 dash orange bitters

Method: Add all ingredients to a mixing glass; Add ice and stir to mix and chill; Strain into a chilled coupe glass; Express orange oils from an orange zest and discard the zest; Garnish with 3 skewered maraschino cherries.

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Cork Whiskey Fest 2023

Shelbourne ace Rory McGee.

The Cork Whiskey Fest 2023 continues to gather momentum and will get another boost with the official launch this coming Thursday.

Some 34 events have been organised over the three days and some have already been sold out. I'm looking forward to two events in particular: the Mitchell Spot Whiskeys & Wine Masterclass and also the Dunville 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. Midleton legend Ger Garland and Brand Ambassador Mathew Smith will guide us through a selection of Spot whiskey along with their finishing wines, for this stellar masterclass.

Jarlath Watson’s Dunville’s Masterclasses have taken on legendary status. He always digs deep into the Echlinville Distillery’s stash of sherry bombs to blow people’s minds. Expect a lot!

Another event that promises much is the Jameson Tasting in the helbourne Bar on Sunday March 26th at 12 noon. Here, Tommy Byrne who is the lead educator in the Irish Whiskey Academy in Midleton and Deirdre O’Carroll (of the Blending Team) will host a lively informative session, bringing an exciting liquid insight to this historic brand. A masterclass not to be missed!

Tickets for this and all the events here.

Raising Uisce Beatha. Irish Whiskey Renaissance.

Irish Whiskey Renaissance

Raising Uisce Beatha*

A tasty introduction to the Single Pot Still whiskeys of Midleton.

Irish Whiskey, the one with the “e”, is on the rise again.

“There is a huge renaissance in Irish Whiskey...25 years of solid growth,” declared Midleton Distillery’s Production Director Peter Morehead during a recent radio progamme.  

And that reality is reinforced by the amount of new distilleries (including West Cork, Dingle, Blackwater and Tullamore) newly in production or about to go into production - you do have to wait three years and a day for your spirit to qualify as whiskey.

It is a stunning comeback by an industry that was on its knees in the 1960’s. But, starting in 1966, amalgamations and foreign takeovers led to the revival with Jameson leading the rise. You can read all about the history of whiskey in this country on the Single Pot Still website.

Here, you'll see how Irish Whiskey makers’ belief in the quality of their Single Pot Still product inadvertently handed an advantage to their Scottish rivals. Of course, there were other factors as Irish slid to the bottom. But that quality is now a key part of the revival, especially in Midleton.

While other whiskey, and whisky, are made from a mash of malted barley, the Pot Still is made from a mash of malted and unmalted barley, an uniquely Irish approach to whiskey distillation. I, despite many a drop of Paddy and, more lately Jameson, am not an whiskey expert, but this is my take on four of these representatives of “the quintessential style of Irish whiskey” recently.

Started off with the familiar Redbreast 12 (and, yes, it is named after the robin). Twelve years, by the way, is the age of the youngest whiskey in the bottle. It has quite rich aromas, partly because it has been matured in Sherry casks. Indeed, all casks from fortified wines areas - Sherry, Port, Madeira, Marsala - can be used by whiskey makers.

Dave Quinn, Master of Whiskey Science
at Jameson Distillery, Midleton

The Redbreast is harmonious on the palate with a good flavoursome finish. While the alcohol is not at all prominent on the 12, the Redbreast 21, as you might expect, is even smoother - got a sample of that during the radio show.

Back to my own line-up now and the Green Spot. This is fresher and spicier, both on the nose and on the palate, a little bit sweeter too, the spicy notes lingering on the finish. Both the first two have an ABV of 40%.

The Power’s John Lane weighs in at 46% and has a darker nose “an abundance of earthy aromas”. There is a spicy introduction to the palate and then hints of sweetness and these continue through to the lingering finish, a finish that I really enjoyed.

The final tasting in the classy quartet was the Midleton Barry Crockett Legacy, another beauty. The nose picks up aromas of vanilla (prominent for me) and toasted oak and the tasting notes also hint “at a touch of lime, succulent green berries, pears and green sweet pepper”.

On the palate it is sweet and spicy but so well balanced and the finish is also superb. Perhaps my favourite of the four. It too has an ABV of 46%.

I was drinking the Single Pot Stills neat, the better to taste the diversity of the flavour spectrum. But most people prefer some kind of mixer - a current favourite seems to be Jameson (not a Single Pot Still!), Ginger and Lime. You can check that, and many more suggestions, here.

The Single Pot Still Irish whiskey was once the most popular in the world. Full of complex flavours and with a creamy mouthfeel, it is a drink we can be proud of. And great to see it on the up again. Slainte!

• To delve deeper into the story of this type of whiskey, please check out this Single Pot Still site . 

  
  

  *Uisce Beatha is Irish for Whiskey, means water of life.