Whiskey Of The Week x 3: Top-Notch Tipples From Ireland, Kentucky & North Carolina

A cool package like this would make you think it’s an expensive whiskey.. And by golly, you’d be right. (photo courtesy Midleton)

It’s been a little while since I posted links to my not-as-regularly-appearing-as-they-should-be Whisk(e)y Of The Week writeups in Forbes, so I’ve got a trio of them to unload on you this time around. First up is Chapter 6 of Midleton’s “Silent Distillery Collection” of really, really old Irish whiskeys. In fact, this is the oldest-ever single pot still Irish whiskey, laid down at the Old Midleton distillery — which closed in 1975 — and bottled a half-century later. I probably should have mentioned in the headline that it’s the first (and so far only) 50 year old Irish whiskey, shouldn’t I…. Be that as it may, the backstory is an interesting one whether or not you can afford the $60,000 or so that a bottle will run you. Link is -> HERE <-.

I hadn’t paid much attention to Kentucky Owl since founder (or revivalist, depending on how you look at it) Dixon Dedman left the fold a few years ago after some disputes with parent company Stoli Group. So it was nice to get reacquainted with the brand via the latest in their Batch series of limited edition bourbons. I had no idea that Bourbon Hall of Famer John Rhea had taken over the blending responsibilities after Dedman left, so I also had no idea that Batch #13 is his final blend for the brand before retirement. It’s fabulous, and since Kentucky Owl doesn’t fly off the shelves the way it once did, you have a reasonably good shot at finding a bottle. Link is -> HERE <-.

North Carolina used to be one of the bourbon capitals of the U.S. — and now they’re making both bourbon and rye there again. I’d never tried a North Carolina whiskey until I sampled the new port cask-finished rye from Oaklore Distilling Co. — and if this is any evidence, there’s some good stuff going on there. The port casks in which it’s finished come from Florida, of all places. To read more about both the whiskey and the port, your link is right -> HERE <-.