I have an emotional connection to the distillery that produced the first two whiskies. Thirteen years ago, I stayed in Dingle to attend one of the greatest weddings of all time. During the wedding someone told me that ground was being broken for a new Irish distillery, right there in Dingle. Somehow through the flood of Redbreast and Guinness I remembered that. That very distillery fired up its stills in late 2012, and it's company has already released a 10 year old, though most of their offerings have no age statement. Meanwhile, I've never tried any of their stuff. So here's a pair!
Dingle Lá 'le Bríde
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| pic lifted from whiskybase |
Owner: Porterhouse Group
Location: Dingle, County Kerry, Ireland
Type: Single Malt
Distillations: Three
Age: NAS
Location: Dingle, County Kerry, Ireland
Type: Single Malt
Distillations: Three
Age: NAS
Maturation: bourbon casks, then rye cask finish
Outturn: 10000 bottles
Outturn: 10000 bottles
Release date: 2023
Alcohol by Volume: 50.5%
(thank you Doctors Springbank!)
Alcohol by Volume: 50.5%
(thank you Doctors Springbank!)
NEAT
Nose - Uh oh, I think they used Koval casks because I can smell that ultra-grainy half-baked unbalanced Craft rye through everything else. There's also some cardamom, notebook paper, mint extract, ethyl, and a hint of manure.
Palate - Better! Ginger, vanilla, lime, cinnamon, and that farmy note.
Finish - Lime pith, cinnamon, and lots of sugar.
DILUTED to ~46%abv, or >½ tsp of water per 30mL whiskey
Nose - Cow shit floating in immature rye. White vinegar and anise.
Palate - A rye+sambuca cocktail with plenty of simple syrup.
Finish - Matches the nose, but with a slight milkiness.
WORDS WORDS WORDS
Oh dear. The (Koval?) rye casks mistreated this Irish whiskey. Firstly, the less I say about the diluted version, the better. Secondly, it doesn't taste half bad, but I'm not sure how much of the single malt remains. Thirdly, I don't know, this bummed me out. The American Craft whiskey scourge came to Ireland, corrupting what could have been a good malt.
Dingle Samhain
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| pic lifted from whiskybase |
Owner: Porterhouse Group
Location: Dingle, County Kerry, Ireland
Type: Single Malt
Distillations: Three
Age: NAS
Location: Dingle, County Kerry, Ireland
Type: Single Malt
Distillations: Three
Age: NAS
Maturation: five years first-fill bourbon casks, then two years in first-fill Muscatel casks (rumored)
Outturn: 10000 bottles
Release date: 2022
Alcohol by Volume: 50.5%
(thank you Doctors Springbank!)
Alcohol by Volume: 50.5%
(thank you Doctors Springbank!)
NEAT
Nose - Complete separation between barley grist and Oloroso-style (rather than classic Muscatel) fortified wine, with cinnamon and spoiled milk in the background.
Palate - Again, better here. Same ginger and vanilla combo, but with walnuts and raw almonds in the mix.
Finish - Lots of ginger and lime pith, with a lingering bitter bite.
DILUTED to ~46%abv, or >½ tsp of water per 30mL whiskey
Nose - Again, curiously Oloroso-esque and a good dose of walnuts. Cleaner, but I'm not sure where the whiskey is.
Palate - Strangely sour and bitter.
Finish - Same as on the palate.
WORDS WORDS WORDS
Similar feelings here. The whiskey does NOT swim, the finish overwhelms, and where's my Dingle? This one's palate works better than the Bríde's, but the neat nose had me worried that this was going to be an all out fail. These two weren't good introductions to Dingle because American rye (especially the craft stuff) and Muscatel are not subtle partners for any triple-distilled whisk(e)y. I'll try the Dingle single malt again someday, maybe even on site! But not another finished product.
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