Ireland

Redbreast 21 yo

February 9, 2014
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The nose is almost a bit solventy, but on the palate there is a sweet fruity explosion. It might be difficult if not impossible to find a better representative of the Irish potstill style. – Rating: 90/100

Tullamore Dew 12 yo

September 5, 2013
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Unusually sweet and with a syrupy mouthfeel, this is not really what you would expect from an Irish blend. Fortunately the sweetness is backed by a healthy dose of spice. – Rating: 82/100

Bushmills Black Bush

July 15, 2013
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A decent daily dram, not more and not less. It feels a bit more like a Scotch blend than an Irish. – Rating: 80/100

Yellow Spot 12 yo

May 27, 2013
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This is another ‘decrescendo’ dram: Fantastic nose and good early palate, then fading away rather quickly. – Rating: 81/100

Bushmills 16 yo

April 15, 2013
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Not quite as massive as the 21 yo, but very much along the same line despite the cask hodge-podge. The standard 40% remark applies as well. – Rating: 86/100

Bushmills 21 yo

April 9, 2013
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Even the low bottling strength cannot detract from the massive fruitiness of this dram. This at cask strength would be very hard to beat. – Rating: 90/100

Midleton 20 yo 1991 For The Whisky Exchange

February 25, 2013
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This is what Irish whiskey is all about, a true benchmark for the ‘pure potstill’ style. – Rating: 92/100

Writer’s Tears

February 16, 2013

Very gentle and very closed. It is not a bad whisky but it is difficult to find something noteworthy in it. – Rating: 76/100

Connemara 12 yo

September 16, 2012
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The ‘old’ Connemara has a distinctive sweet fruitiness not found in the NAS expressions Another unique dram from Cooley. – Rating: 85/100

Powers John’s Lane 12 yo

September 14, 2012
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Less fruity than I expected from a pot still whiskey, it is rather delicate and light bodied but shows quite a bit of wood spice and driness. A very enjoyable Irish alternative. – Rating: 84/100

Drop Of The Irish 1996/2011

April 2, 2012

A very smooth and elegant dram, even at cask strength. The flavours are quite nice but a lacklustre finish drags it down a little – Rating: 78/100

Drop Of The Irish NAS

April 2, 2012

The nose of this is actually quite nice, but on the palate you notice that an obviously worn-out cask was not able to breathe much life into this spirit. – Rating: 67/100

Redbreast 12 yo Cask Strength

February 18, 2012

A very good potstill dram at natural strength. It is a bit less fruity than the regular 12 yo expression which I actually prefer slightly. – Rating: 86/100

Comparing Two Tyrconnell 10 yo Cask Finishes

August 25, 2011
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A head to head comparision of sherry and port finishes.

Kilbeggan 18 yo

April 14, 2011
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The Kilbeggan 18 is an excellent blend that with its rather strong vanilla notes even bears some resemblance to a bourbon, but with a smoothness that sets it apart from the former. – Rating: 86/100

Greenore 18 yo

January 22, 2011

Quite a nice grain whisky with a very dense palate, not easy to pick up speficic notes. Perhaps a tad on the bitter side but still very pleasant – Rating: 84/100

Connemara Turf Mor

November 18, 2010
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The dry fruityness of the Connemara peat monster is something very unique. Amazingly complex, very young, yet it cannot be called immature. But it might be too much for some. – Rating: 87/100

Redbreast 12

November 8, 2010
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A very rich and creamy Irish whiskey with an abundance of sweet and fruity flavours. The low bottling strength of 40% is to blame that a place in the Top Dram list is missed. – Rating: 89/100

Bushmills 16 yo

October 19, 2010
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Quite smoooth and fruity, but the flavours are not very complex and the 40% bottling strength results in an unpleasant watery mouthfeel. – Rating: 78/100

Quo Vadis Kilbeggan?

August 28, 2010
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As some of you might remember, I was absolutely delighted by the very reasonably priced Irish Kilbeggan. Now I found out that it has changed not only from the looks.

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