Tag: blended Irish

Samuel Gelston’s Blended Irish Whiskey

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Maker: Samuel Gelston’s, Belfast, Northern Ireland, UK (Johnny Neil)

Distillery: Undisclosed. West Cork? Bushmills?

Age: NAS

ABV: 40%

Michigan State Minimum: $25

Appearance: Golden straw.

Nose: Malt, butterscotch, sea spray, touch of leather.

Palate: Medium bodied and semi-sweet. Butterscotch and toffee, with a little bite in the end.

Finish: Like eating toffee, but without having to pick it out of your teeth when you’re done.

Mixed: Does ok in a Blackthorn #3. The sweetness balances out the bitterness of the vermouth, absinthe, and bitters. Did better in an Irish Cocktail (whiskey plus dashes of maraschino, curaçao, absinthe, and bitters) with more complementary flavors. I didn’t try it with ginger ale, but it seems like it would get lost in it.

Parting words: I bought this whiskey because I was in a hurry. I was looking for an affordable Irish to review for St. Patrick’s day weekend, saw it on the shelf at Holiday Market, grabbed it, and ran to the check out because I had places to be. I don’t regret my choice.

Gelston’s is a bottler headquartered in Belfast, but owned by Johnny Neil, a New Zealander who is a descendent of Harry Neil who bought the brand from Sam Gelston in the nineteenth century. Johnny is also cousin to Big Time Movie Actor Sam Neil. Sam has collaborated with Johnny, and supplies Gelston’s with used Pinot Noir barrels from his winery in New Zealand.

There are six Gelston’s expressions currently available in the state of Michigan: Blended, Single Malt ($35), Bourbon cask ($40), Pinot Noir cask ($45), 25 y/o ($420), and Irish Cream ($25). I’ve only ever seen this Blended expression, but I’ll keep an eye out for the others.

While Gelston’s Blended isn’t a world-beater, it meets expectations for its price range. I like it best as a sipper, but it’s fine in strong, classic cocktails too. Samuel Gelston’s Blended Irish Whiskey is recommended.

Hell-Cat Maggie

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Maker: World Spirits, Princeton, Minnesota, USA (Phillips)

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Distiller: Cooley, Louth, Leinster, Ireland (Beam Suntory)

Style: Blended Irish Whiskey

Age: NAS (at least three years old)

ABV: 40%

Michigan state minimum: $22

Appearance: Medium copper.

Nose: Sweet malt, a little sherry, leather, woodruff, anise.

Palate: Full bodied and soft. Caramel, butterscotch candy with a little bit on the back end.

Finish: Vanilla custard, white pepper, nutmeg, alcohol.

Parting words: Like 2 Gingers, this is another Irish whiskey from Minnesota (?!) but this one comes with a story about someone in a gang in New York or something. I don’t care about NDP marketing bullshit, so I’m not going to get into that.

I’m a big fan of the Cooley Distillery, and Hell-Cat Maggie is in the classic Cooley style, so it has that going for it. It’s not as elegant as Tyrconnell or Knappogue Castle but it’s a little more refined than 2 Gingers (which one would expect at $8 more). It mixes well too. My only criticism is that this Hell-Cat lacks claws and teeth. She would benefit from 2%- 6% higher ABV. Still, I like her. Hell-Cat Maggie is recommended.

Kirkland Irish Whiskey

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Distiller: Not disclosed (likely Irish Distillers, Dublin, Ireland [Pernod-Ricard])20190313_214454.jpg

Style: Triple distilled Irish blend

Age: 4 y/o

ABV: 40%

Michigan state minimum: $40/1750 ml (comes out to about $17 for 750 ml)

Appearance: Dark straw.

Nose: Cream soda, dried flowers.

Palate: Mild, but pleasant. Lemon meringue pie, alcohol.

Finish: Vanilla, malt, toffee.

Mixed: I tried Kirkland Irish Whiskey with ginger ale, in a Blackthorn and a Paddy cocktail. I didn’t care much for the Blackthorn, but the other two were very good.

Parting words: Kirkland Irish Whiskey only comes around my local Costco in the month of March, but I wish it was available year round. It’s simple and relatively young, but still elegant. It tastes a little like Jameson, but the floral aromas are balanced with a sweet creaminess that is lacking in the world’s best-selling Irish whiskey. Not much else to say, but I’m enjoying Kirkland a lot more than the last Irish whiskey I bought, which was twice the age, incidentally. Kirkland Irish Whiskey is highly recommended.

 

The Quiet Man

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Maker: Niche Brands, Derry, Northern Ireland, UK (Luxco)20181223_194138.jpg

Distillery: Undisclosed

Style: Blended Irish whiskey

Age: NAS

ABV: 40%

Price: $30 (Binny’s)

Appearance: Bright gold.

Nose: Malt, bourbon barrel, Riesling.

Palate: More sweet malt, touch of oak, alcohol, apricot, vanilla custard.

Finish: More apricot, custard, burn.

Parting words: There are a lot of sourced, blended Irish whiskeys on the market right now, and like The Quiet Man, most of their producers are in the process of building a distillery. Whether these distilleries will ever be able to fully supply the brands they’re associated with is an open question (see also Lux Row).

As it stands, though, The Quiet Man is a good, entry-level/tumbler blend. The bourbon barrels used for finishing give it warm, dessert flavors and aromas which complement the fruity sweetness of the malt spirit. $30 is a solid price for this solid whiskey. The Quiet Man is recommended.