Type | Irish whiskey |
---|---|
Manufacturer | Irish Distillers (Pernod Ricard) |
Country of origin | Ireland |
Introduced | 1998 |
Alcohol by volume | 40% |
Knappogue Castle Irish Whiskey is a brand of premium single malt Irish whiskey produced by the Irish Distillers subsidiary of Pernod Ricard. The brand is named for historic Knappogue Castle in County Clare, Ireland, originally built by Clan MacNamara in 1467. Knappogue Castle is known for bottling one of the oldest and rarest known Irish whiskies, Knappogue Castle 1951, a pot still whiskey produced at the now-defunct B. Daly Distillery. [1]
In 1966, Mark Edwin Andrews and his wife Lavone´ purchased Knappogue Castle in County Clare. As they renovated the structure, Mark Andrews amassed a collection of rare single malt Irish whiskey, which he privately bottled and named Knappogue Castle 1951 after the historic building. He focused primarily on the whiskeys once produced at the B. Daly Distillery in County Offaly, which ceased whiskey production in 1954. [2] The castle was purchased by Shannon Development in 1996, and is now a venue for weddings and banquets.
In 1998, his son, Mark Edwin Andrews III, launched Great Spirits LLC, which made Knappogue Castle 1951 available to the public. In 1999, the company introduced vintage-dated single malts, under the same brand name. In 2003, the Great Spirits was merged into Castle Brands Inc, and in 2010, Castle Brands introduced Knappogue Castle 12 Year Old Single Malt. [3] Knappogue continues to source its whiskey from other distilleries including the Cooley Distillery.
In 2021, Knappogue Castle Irish Whiskey was bought by Irish Distillers, an subsidiary off Pernod Richard. [4]
Knappogue Castle has several different products it releases under the Knappogue brand name.
Limited Releases:
Knappogue Castle Whiskey is generally well received. Drinkspirits.com called Knappogue Castle 12 Year Old “a perfect example of a great Irish whiskey that manages to capture a great deal of flavor and complexity from the malted barley and present them in a light and affable manner.” [6] In 2014, Knappogue received a rating of 92 (Recommended) at the Ultimate Beverage Challenge. [7]
Scotch whisky is malt whisky or grain whisky, made in Scotland.
Whisky or whiskey is a type of liquor made from fermented grain mash. Various grains are used for different varieties, including barley, corn, rye, and wheat. Whisky is typically aged in wooden casks, which are typically made of charred white oak. Uncharred white oak casks previously used for the aging of port, rum or sherry are also sometimes used.
Single malt whisky is malt whisky from a single distillery.
The Glenlivet distillery is a distillery near Ballindalloch in Moray, Scotland, that produces single malt Scotch whisky. It is the oldest legal distillery in Scotland. It was founded in 1824 and has operated almost continuously since. The distillery remained open throughout the Great Depression and its only closure came during World War II. The Glenlivet distillery has grown in the post-war period to become one of the biggest single malt distilleries. The Glenlivet brand is the biggest selling single malt whisky in the United States and the second biggest selling single malt brand globally after Glenfiddich.
Laphroaig distillery is an Islay single malt Scotch whisky distillery. It is named after the area of land at the head of Loch Laphroaig on the south coast of the island of Islay.
Balvenie distillery is a Speyside single malt Scotch whisky distillery in Dufftown, Scotland, owned by William Grant & Sons.
William Grant & Sons Ltd is an independent, family-owned Scottish company that distills Scotch whisky and other selected categories of spirits. It was established in 1887 by William Grant, and is run by Grant's descendants as of 2018. It is the largest of the handful of Scotch whisky distillers remaining in family ownership.
The Old Bushmills Distillery is an alcohol distillery in Bushmills, County Antrim, Northern Ireland, founded in 1784 and owned by Proximo Spirits. Bushmills Distillery uses water drawn from Saint Columb's Rill, which is a tributary of the River Bush. The distillery is a popular tourist attraction, with around 120,000 visitors per year. It produces the Bushmills brand of Irish whiskey.
Tullamore Dew, rendered in most branding as Tullamore D.E.W., is a brand of Irish whiskey produced by William Grant & Sons. It is the second-largest-selling brand of Irish whiskey globally, with sales of over 1,500,000 cases per annum as of 2020.
Single barrel whiskey is a premium class of whiskey in which each bottle comes from an individual aging barrel, instead of coming from blending together the contents of various barrels to provide uniformity of color and taste. By contrast, some other whiskeys, even ones that are not blends, may be combined from more than one batch, or even from differing years to achieve consistency. The whiskey from each barrel is bottled separately, with each bottle bearing the barrel number and in most cases the dates for the beginning and end of aging. Each barrel is believed to contribute unique characteristics to the finished whiskey.
Green Spot is a single pot still Irish whiskey, produced specifically for Mitchell & Son of Dublin by Irish Distillers at the Midleton Distillery in Cork, Ireland. Green Spot is one of the few remaining bonded Irish whiskeys, along with Mitchell's three older offerings, Yellow Spot, Red Spot, and Blue Spot. It is one of only four whiskeys specifically produced for and sold by an independent wine merchant in Ireland.
Powers is a brand of Irish whiskey produced by the Irish Distillers subsidiary of Pernod Ricard. Historically a single pot still whiskey, the flagship Powers Gold Label brand was the first Irish whiskey ever to be bottled. Powers Gold Label was the best-selling whiskey in Ireland.
Midleton Very Rare is a premium Irish whiskey, produced by the Irish Distillers subsidiary of Pernod Ricard at the New Midleton Distillery, in the East Cork town of Midleton, from which it gets its name. A non-age statement whiskey, containing a mix of pot still and grain whiskeys, it is matured for about twelve to twenty years in ex-bourbon American Oak barrels. One of the most expensive whiskeys regularly produced by Irish Distillers, since its launch in 1984, Midleton Very Rare has frequently been the recipient of strong reviews and awards.
Redbreast is a brand of single pot still Irish Whiskey produced by the Irish Distillers subsidiary of Pernod Ricard. It was originally bottled by Gilbey's, a Dublin spirits merchant using distillate sourced from Jameson's Bow Street Distillery. In the 1980s, the brand was purchased by Irish Distillers, the producer of Jameson. It is the largest selling single pot still Irish whiskey in the world.
German whisky is a distilled beverage produced in Germany made from grains traditionally associated with the production of whisky. The distillation of German-made whisky is a relatively recent phenomenon having only started in the last 30 years. The styles produced resemble those made in Ireland, Scotland and the United States: single malts, blends, and bourbon styles. There is no standard spelling of German whiskies with distilleries using both "whisky" and "whiskey" and one even using "Whesskey", a play on the word whisky and Hessen, the state in which it is produced. There are currently 23 distilleries in Germany producing whisky.
Nelson's Green Brier Distillery is a whiskey distillery located in downtown Nashville, Tennessee that produces different varieties of Tennessee whiskey and bourbons. The distillery offers daily public tours and tastings as well as a large mercantile shop with bottles, barware and apparel available for purchase. In July 2023, Nelson's Green Brier Distillery opened a newly renovated distillery restaurant and full-service bar at their 1414 Clinton St. Nashville, TN 37203 location. The same facility also now offers four new private event and dining spaces available to rent for corporate functions, weddings and celebrations of varying sizes.
Willett Distillery Ltd, is a private, family-owned-and-operated company that produces bourbon and rye whiskey. Over the years, the company has bottled whiskeys that range from two years of aging maturity up to 28 years. The company was named Kentucky Bourbon Distillers (KBD) between 1984 and 2012.
Dingle Distillery is an Irish whiskey distillery established in 2012 and billing itself as an 'artisan' distillery. The distillery is located in a converted sawmill in Milltown on the outskirts of Dingle, in a Gaeltacht in the southwest of Ireland. The first whiskeys distilled and matured at the distillery were released in late 2016. In addition to whiskey, the distillery also produces and markets Dingle vodka and Dingle Gin.
The following outline is provided as an overview of and topical guide to whisky: