Great little spot in Kinsale! They have a nice selection too.

www.kinsalemeadco.ie/our-mead/

My, this was longer than I had intended. Guess that’s enough for now. Maybe one day we could discuss the history of Irish whiskey and how it was shaped by an 18th-Century British tax. Until then, hope at least one person enjoys this... 36/

One final cool fact: the color of whiskey is solely the byproduct of these barrels. The oak is charred on the inside and, based on how charred, determines how light or dark brown it gets. 35/

The angel’s share accounts for the discrepancy in price between very-aged whiskey and the minimum three-year version. As you can imagine, what starts on day one as a full barrel is very-much not full after, say, 18 years. Thus, the $400 or so difference. 34/

One downside to using wood: all the expanding and contracting in the varying temperatures creates evaporation. We lose 2 - 2 1/2% of the contents each year due to what the business calls “the angels share.” 33/

When it’s cold, the whiskey tends to seep into the wood. When it’s warm (sort of) the whiskey comes out. This constant seeping and bleeding allows the liquid to impart all the flavors. 32/

So why do these wood vessels influence the flavor so much? Well, in bonded warehouses, there are no temperature controls. Which means they are cold in the winter and warm in the summer (OK, fine, not so warm in the summer in Ireland). 31/

Other kinds of barrels used for aging: brandy (gentle oak and floral notes), rum (tropical fruit), sherry (dried fruit, raisins, nuts, and chocolate), port (dark fruits and spices), and in some rare cases mezcal (coffee, tobacco, smoke, and earth). 30/

So most Irish Whiskey is aged in old bourbon barrels that were first used in America. These are said to add flavors like honey and coconut to the final product. 29/

Virgin oak casks are most common in the U.S., where they’re legally required for making bourbon, a whiskey whose mash needs to be mostly corn. Since the barrels can’t be used again for bourbon, they’re sold to places like Ireland that don’t have that rule. 28/

The other reason aging is a big deal: the barrel you use has serious effects on the flavor. Fresh oak barrels (called virgin oak) are said to impart caramel, vanilla, and baking spice flavors, for example. 27/

Small distillers have to pick a bonded warehouse for aging. It’s how the government collects taxes. But I like to think of it as a way for them to ensure the quality of the world-renowned Irish Whiskey name. They at least make sure it’s aged for the minimum three-year period legally required. 26/

So anyway, aging whiskey is a big deal. That process occurs in oak barrels and rules about aging differ around the world. In Ireland, you can’t just age whiskey wherever you feel like it. Throughout Ireland, there are actually government-sponsored facilities called bonded warehouses. 25/

Incidentally, you might have heard the term “triple distilled.” That just means that three stills have been used in the process like I described. The alternative would be to use a column still instead which works continuously and not in batches. Big whiskey producers use them more often. 24/

At 20% ABV, the liquid is now a spirit. So it makes sense that the final two stills used are called the Spirit Stills. Again, we kind of just repeat the process until we’re left with a clear liquid that is 63.5% ABV. We call it “new make,” but really it’s just whiskey that hasn’t been aged yet. 23/

We send the 20% clear alcohol into a collection tank. After a while, the hydrometer tells distillers that the alcohol level is falling under 20%. Which means they need to stop collecting and return the rest of the liquid to the still. We’ll repeat the process until we have a full tank. 22/

The hydrometer is important. Have you heard stories of people going blind from drinking moonshine? (Or in Ireland they call it poteen?) Well, that’s not just a myth. The first stuff that comes out is sort of toxic. When the hydrometer reads 20%, the methanol is gone and it’s safe to collect. 21/