By Charly SHELTON

There are a few things attached to Ireland for people around the world. Some are embarrassing and overplayed, like leprechauns, green beer and Riverdance. Some are positive, like the beautiful Irish brogue, Guinness and real Irish music. Whiskey holds a spot within this zeitgeist as being natively attached to Ireland yet, for many, their knowledge barely goes beyond Jameson and Bushmills. In recent years, Tullamore D.E.W. has become more popular and might be seen on a shelf at a whiskey bar, but being commonly known is still another five years or so away. So when in Dublin, the beating heart of Ireland, why not learn a little bit about the genuinely Irish tradition of whiskey at the Irish Whiskey Museum?

Unlike many of the distillery tours that focus on what each has done throughout history, the Irish Whiskey Museum is not promoting any one brand. It gives a more unbiased overview of the story of the drink starting from its first distillation in the early Middle Ages by Irish monks, experimenting with imported equipment from the Middle East. Uisce beatha, Gaelic for water of life, was made in monasteries by brewing beer and then boiling (distilling) it into a purer form of alcohol, known as spirit, which was then aged in wood casks for at least three years. Over time as the drink became more prominent and widespread, uisce beatha (pronounced ouish-ke ba-ha) was shortened and Anglicized into whiskey. By the time the first complete dictionary of the English language was compiled in 1755 by Samuel Johnson, uisce beatha was a well-known drink and was defined in the dictionary as “Irish whiskey, renowned for its mellow and pleasant flavour.”

Irish whiskey, although less well known today than Scotch whisky or American bourbon whiskey, was the first to be produced and brought to Scotland during the reign of Henry II, and then to America during the Colonial period. This museum covers the techniques, the history and the characteristics of the ancient tradition and it is truly fascinating. Among other tidbits, guests learn the difference between whiskey and whisky, they learn what the angels’ share is and why it’s different from the leprechauns’ share, and what goes into whiskey-making from brewing to bottling.

I suggest going in the evening for the once-a-day guided tour, led by a tour guide who can answer any question one can think of, and ends in a whiskey tasting and blending experience. Not only is the museum fascinating but also to taste a selection of featured Irish whiskeys really is a great start to the night. The selection of whiskeys rotates out regularly, with some weeks focused on different blends from the same label and other weeks focused on similar styles across different distillers. After getting a feel for personal preference, guests can blend their own mini bottle of uisce beatha to take home.

I was invited to take the whiskey blending tour during my visit to Ireland and I thoroughly enjoyed my experience. The whiskeys featured for my blending were Glendalough Double Barrel, The Tyrconnel Single Malt, Powers Three Swallow Reserve Single Pot Still (my favorite) and Connemara Peated Single Malt. I had always thought I liked sweeter, milder whiskeys like the Powers Pot Still but, after tasting across the board from four different distillers, I found that I need a kick of spice and smoke from the Connemara Peated Single Malt in my perfect blend. My final blended bottle has notes of tobacco, vanilla, bread and chicory with a bit of a burn that lingers on the finish. It was a one-of-a-kind experience to see all the different ways whiskey is treated across the island.

I highly recommend the blending experience at the Irish Whiskey Museum, right along Grafton Street in Dublin.

For more information and tickets, visit IrishWhiskeyMuseum.ie.

  Charly Shelton