Redbreast 18 Takes Flight
Midleton Distillery celebrates the newest aged expression from Ireland’s most awarded single pot still whiskey
The team that makes Redbreast have been waiting for the ideal time to debut Redbreast 18. With Redbreast 12 and 15 at the top of many Irish whiskey enthusiasts’ lists and the 21 and 27 Year Old finding their perch in coveted collections, the 18 Year Old now takes its spot as the newest member of the flock from the Midleton Distillery. This new expression is crafted from both malted and unmalted barley and aged in ex-bourbon barrels as well as casks seasoned with oloroso sherry, cream sherry and ruby port. The results burst with berry fruit, hazelnut chocolate and caramelized stone fruit.
“It’s something that we couldn’t have brought out before,” explains master blender Dave McCabe, during a recent gathering of friends and colleagues at the distillery. “If we had come out with an 18 before now, it would have been using similar stock, which means a similar taste profile as the 15. Over the last 10 to 12 years, and even longer, we’ve been accumulating other types of casks that we haven’t used before for Redbreast 18. We’re also using a small amount of whiskey aged and ruby port barrels, which we use a lot of in the Redbreast 27.” This gives the Redbreast 18 its own edge of flavor that isn’t in the others. In particular, the inclusion of cream sherry casks, rarely used by Redbreast in the aging process adds complexity.
Working alongside Redbreast master blender emeritus Billy Leighton, McCabe’s challenge was to understand the complexity of the flavors to be able to create something that’s unique that they had enough inventory to be able to replicate going forward. For the 18, he searched for a clear identity within the existing range. “I did not want it too dry. I still wanted a little tannic and a little kind of red wine and bitter chocolate,” says McCabe.
The goal was to create a full-bodied whiskey with oak tannins complementing grapes and autumn fruits, ginger and licorice. All of this comes to life alongside the wine-seasoned oak influences of dried fruits, berries and citrus peel with pot still spices. “Because I think that’s a nice change from the stone fruits, peaches and tropicals I get in the 21 or the herbal character and almost a fudge, butterscotch sweetness in the 15,” McCabe adds. “I wanted to just create that bit of a disruption there. But I did want those ripe fruits within it, and that’s where that small percentage of ruby port casks came in.”
Redbreast’s journey to its current popularity began in 1857, when W&A Gilbey was founded in London, adding branches in Ireland and Scotland, eventually amassing the largest stock of Irish whiskey outside of the distilleries themselves. By 1887 they began marketing John Jameson & Son’s whiskey and by 1912 the first documented appearance of “Redbreast” J.J. Liqueur Whiskey 12 Years Old. The name, from a Robin Redbreast bird, was a nod to the chairman of Gibley’s hobby as a bird enthusiast. Gilbey’s sold the name to Irish Distillers in 1985 leading to the reintroduction of Redbreast in 1991 and to the range of whiskeys they have crafted leading up to this debut of the Redbreast 18.
McCabe says, “I like to say, we don’t make whiskey to look at. We make it to drink. And I think of 18 as one that you will drink because you know you can buy it again. It’s one that you can share with people every day and on special occasions.”
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