March 2010 - Monthly Feature - The Tyrconnell

Single Malt Irish Whiskey

The distillation of Irish Whiskey has a long history. Some sources place it as far back as the early 6th century when Irish monks brought the distillation process back from the Middle East . This history has resulted in hundreds of years of experience and perfection to bring us to the stage we are at today. In Gaelic the drink became known as "Uisce Beatha" which means "water of life." The Normans called it "fuisce" and eventually it evolved into "whiskey." Barley and fresh spring water are the key ingredients needed and are found in abundance throughout Ireland.

A Single Malt Whiskey is the product of one specific distillery and has not been mixed with whisky from any other distilleries. Tyrconnell is distilled by the award winning Cooley distillery who have been the driving force behind the Irish Single Malt evolution. Most Irish malt whiskey has been traditionally found its way into blended whiskeys thus it is rare to find Irish malt whiskey bottled in its pure form. Irish Single Malts are more complex and character then their blended Irish cousins due to their rich malty flavours and have smoothness and an absence of smoky characteristics associated with Scotch Single Malts. Irish single malts have emerged as a fast growing premium segment of the whiskey market. This charge has been lead by the independent Irish spirit of Tyrconnell.

Ingredients - The Tyrconnell's principal ingredients are the finest Irish barley and pure spring water. Barley is first steeped in water to germinate. Starches in the sprouting grains are gradually converted into natural sugars. After 7 - 14 days green malt goes to kiln for drying. The heat halts the growth, and the barley is then ready for mashing. The absence of smoke in the malting process ensures that the clean taste of the malt and barley shine through in the final whiskey.

Mashing & Fermentation - After the malting process the barley is milled and added with hot Irish water to a mash tun where the starches in the mash are converted to sugars and the resultant liquid is called 'wort'. Yeast is added to the wort and fermentation begins. The living yeast feeds on sugars, producing ethanol and other alcohols. Large volumes of carbon dioxide gas are also produced and the wash froths violently.

Distillation - The wash is now passed through a traditional copper pot still in order to produce the final end product - malt whiskey. In distillation, the still is heated to just below the boiling point of water and the alcohol and other compounds with a lower boiling point vaporise first and pass over the neck into either a condenser or a worm - a large copper coil immersed in cold running water. The shape and size of the pot stills affect the character of the individual whiskey. Smaller stills with larger necks produce more refined whiskies as in the case of Tyrconnell.

Maturing Tyrconnell - Tyrconnell is gently matured from many years in seasoned oak barrels in 200 year old granite warehouses. It is during maturation that the whiskey becomes smoother, more flavoursome, and draws its golden colour from the cask.

Selection - The character and uniqueness of Tyrconnell is maintained by our master blender, Noel Sweeney. He carefully selects the casks of whiskies to ensure that the final product is well balanced, smooth and unique.