Whiskey is one of the most popular alcoholic drinks in the world. It’s highly respected for its unique and interesting profile. Why? It’s aging-free because it’s rare, and it doesn’t have any common problems that affect other whiskeys. They are all high-quality and high-end products. So when you do find a great whiskey – it can be hard to get your hands on. But we have found five underrated Irish whiskies that may surprise you by their complexity and intrigue. They might not be the best or even close, but they sure as hell know how to make good old-fashioned drinking fun!
Single Grain Irish Whiskey
Single Grain Whisk(e)y is probably one of Ireland’s most misunderstood and underappreciated whiskeys. I know we have written about this one before, but it has become so well-known because it’s extremely complex. It’s a combination of different grain types (potato, wheat, corn), distilled at two different temperatures (80/100 proof). And some of them were aged up to 10 years in ex-Bourbon barrels. This makes for an incredibly complex tasting experience. There really isn’t anything else like it out there with notes of light chocolate, coffee, raisins, oak, smoke, cereal, and even wet stones.
Midleton Distillery 12 Years Old
It’s no question that Midleton Distillery produces some of the greatest single malts in the entire world. Everyone knows that. Unfortunately, there aren’t many people who appreciate just how good their Small Batch release is. The Small Batch releases consist of around 200 bottles each year, and only 50 or less will actually make it into stores. We can see why they put such emphasis on making only small batches.
These bottlings are much more complex than the standard releases and have the potential to go down as being among the best single malts ever made. I remember reading somewhere that the last time Midleton released a 12-Year-Old was back during Prohibition. Back then, the distillery couldn’t produce enough to meet demand due to their having been forced to turn over their operations to the government. It was also thought that they had hidden away these 12-year-olds in barrels and buried them in caves.
Powers Gold Label Irish Whiskey
I don’t know where this expression comes from. Maybe they felt sorry for me growing up in England, but they always seemed to have several limited edition variations of whiskey available at almost every store in the country. However, none of them could compare to the original. While other whiskey producers would offer a variety of single malt expressions, they either never offered a true premium Irish whiskey or were simply too expensive.
When Powers purchased the rights to the brand name, they decided to bring the price point down and give us something worth buying again. So what does this mean for us? Well, it means that they stopped producing cheap knockoffs and started making some truly excellent whisk(e)ys once again. Each label features a blend of malted barley, potatos, brown sugar, yeast nutrient, and water. That’s right; there is nothing new or different about these. Yet somehow, they manage to take a rather familiar product and create something special. The result is a very smooth whiskey with notes of vanilla, caramel, raisins, and dried fruit. There is a lot to like about it. Just be aware that its price has crept up considerably since its initial introduction.
Jameson 15 Years Old Cask Strength
Jameson is quickly becoming one of my favorite Irish bands. They are releasing a ton of great stuff right now, which includes the Jameson 15 Years Old. This particular offering is a special old Tom-style cask strength that’s bottled at 40% above (instead of 43%). What does that mean? It means that instead of the normal 100 proof, it’s 150! Instead of being easy drinking, it’s going to be quite challenging. The higher proof is a natural byproduct of spending longer in the barrel. But while that sounds cool, it doesn’t necessarily translate into better taste. In fact, after trying Jameson 15-Year-Old, I think I prefer Stranahan’s 14-Year-Old, especially when I want a little easier drink.
Blarney Stone 18-Year-Old Cask Strength
This is not an inexpensive bottle. If we find one and decide to pull the trigger, we should expect to spend close to $200. It’ll probably cost us a bit more if we buy from Amazon. But if we love high-end whiskeys, then we owe it to ourselves to save our pennies and grab one. Why? Because this really is the finest whiskey out there right now. We will get a few things from this whiskey that we won’t find in any of the regular cask strength offerings. To start with, it’s matured in first-fill sherry casks for the last 18 years.
They used American oak barrels until about 10 years ago but switched over due to worries about safety. Since then, they’ve been using sherry barrels exclusively. So whatever else this whiskey offers, it’s got fantastic character because of the time spent inside those casks. And even though it’s only 50.3% above, it packs a huge punch because of how long it spends inside each cask. The finish is warm and spicy, the nose is complex and rich, and the palate features leather, spices, honey, molasses, and dark chocolate flavors. We are looking forward to seeing how it compares to their older bottlings. For now, I highly recommend getting a sample from somewhere so we can see just how incredible their whisk(e)y is. We may have to wait a bit to find it, as most bottles are sold through specialty stores.
These are five underrated whiskeys that we need to try. They are all relatively easy to acquire and represent a wide range of prices. We hope you will enjoy trying these whiskies no matter who we are.
