Well, maybe that title isn’t perfect. It’s been exciting over there for a while. When you consider that in the 1960′s, the Irish whiskey industry was on its knees, after many years of boom, followed by too many years of bust, it has been quite a turnaround to where the industry stands now. 13% growth in the European markets in 2012, sales up 400% in the last 10 years in the US. Tullamore Dew being bought by William Grant and Sons, Teeling planning huge investment in distilleries, Bushmills working away increasing their sales growth in the North, and Beam Global working on maximising Cooley’s potential.
And when you talk about Ireland and whiskey, you really have to mention The Irish Distillers Company. Jameson, Redbreast, Green Spot, Paddy and more, all make up their huge, varied and dynamic portfolio. The volume they are doing on Jameson is an industry leader, the list of new products and new ideas coming out of Midleton is astounding and the quality level is very high.
I will be visiting Old Midleton over the next few days to see the unveiling of the Irish Distiller Company’s new distillery, as they embark on the next step of their rapid expansion. I imagine I am going to see all sorts of new equipment, innovation and hopefully, lots of exciting whiskey.
If you have any questions, give me a shout. I hope to have the time to slam up a wee blog post tomorrow too. Fingers crossed.
Chris Hoban
