So first thing out of the gate… Irish Whiskey (yes with an ‘e’) can only be called Irish Whiskey if it is made in Ireland and is cask-aged for a minimum of 3 years. However, most producers age their Irish Whiskey for at least 2 to 3 times that requirement.
The Irish also use a copper pot still and they distill their delicious drops of dew 3 times (with a few exceptions, the Scots distill theirs twice). This third distillation softens the whiskey a wee bit, but it keeps all of the fabulous complex flavours for which Irish Whiskey is known.
Irish Whiskey is not peated, for the most part. There are a few ‘peated’ ones in the market now, but we suspect that number will stay quite low.
To your health, or as the Irish would say Sláinte (pronounced Slon-cha)
Some of the Irish Whiskey brands and prices you can find at Leduc Co-Op Liquor:
$ 43.39 – Bushmills 10 Year Old
$ 39.99 – Kilbeggan
$ 34.59 – Jameson
$ 58.59 – Connemara Peated Single Malt