Irish Whisky

As the name suggests, Irish whisky is the whisky that is made in Ireland. The word ‘whisky’ is an Anglicization of the ancient Gaelic term ‘uisce beatha’, which means ‘water of life’. While the word Irish is used in context of the place of the whisky’s production. There are different types of whiskies prepared in Ireland. Usually, they comprise of Single Malt Whisky, Single Grain Whisky, Pure Pot Still Whisky and Blended Whisky. These whiskies vary in preparation, ingredients as well as composition of ingredients. In addition, there are varied brands which are known for different whiskey types. Therefore, as per your choice and taste, you can choose from the various types and brands of Irish whiskey available in the market.

Blended Whiskey

A blended whisky is made by blending different types of whiskies together. It is generally produced by mixing one or more single malt whiskies (made from 100 percent malted grain such as barley or rye, along with other grain whiskies or neutral grain spirits). Some of the popular brands of blended whiskey are Black Bush, Bushmills Original, Inishowen, Jameson, Kilbeggan, Locke's Blend, Midleton Very Rare, Millars, Paddy, Powers and Tullamore Dew.

Single malt whisky is the one that is distilled at a single distillery and made entirely from a single type of malted grain, usually barley. However, there are single malt rye whiskies as well. Single malt whiskies are distilled using a pot still. Some of the known brands of single malt are Bushmills (10, 16, 21 yrs), Connemara Peated Malt (Regular, Cask Strength & 12 yrs), Locke's Single Malt (8 yr) and Tyrconnell.

 

Pure Pot Still
Pure pot still whiskey is the whiskey that contains only ‘pot still whiskey’ and is quite distinct to Ireland. Conventionally, it was produced from a mixture of malted and unmalted barley, distilled in a pot still. However, as per modern Irish law, any whiskey distilled in a pot still can be termed ‘pot still whiskey’. Therefore, it is not legally necessary for a distiller to add unmalted barley to his or her grain mix. However, still the majority of ‘pot still whiskeys’ stick to the conventional methods. Some of the popular brands of pot still whiskeys are Green Spot, Jameson Pure Pot Still and Redbreast.