“The Irish Whiskey category allows us, as distillers and blenders, to adopt approaches to production and flavour that are often unique to whiskey making on this island,” says Lora Hemy, head distiller of the Roe and Co Distillery, adding that “what is even more exciting is that none of these approaches have ‘just happened’ – they are all rooted in some form of historic practice”.
And she has a point – Irish whiskey has been engaging consumers the world over, becoming the fastest growing brown spirits category over the last few years and pre-Covid crisis volumes were looking really strong sales rose 10.6% in 2019 according to the IWSR. When looking into the brands that really stood out, Jameson – the de facto category leader globally – shifted 8m cases in 2019, up 800,000 cases on 2018 and Proper 12 volumes went up to 213,800 in 2019 cases from just over 38,000 the year before.
It is no coincidence that the top three brands in the category, Jameson, Bushmills and Tullamore Dew are the ones leading the way for cask exploration, innovation and communication, but the smaller players are able to be a lot more nimble with their cask maturation policies and products.
“Given our ability to mature in much more diverse barrels I believe it gives us a competitive advantage to excite a whole new generation of whiskey drinkers discovering Irish whiskey for the first time in a totally new way,” says Stephen Teeling of the Teeling Distillery.
“We have formed strong partnerships with other craft spirits producers like Plantation, Kyro and Trois Riviere to showcase the reciprocal relationship between their craft and ours which I feel adds to the category in a positive way rather than be locked in by strict regulations.”
Not being bound to rigid rules and mandates as their scotch whisky peers are by the Scotch Whisky Association certainly helps too as Kevin O’Gorman, master distiller at Midleton Distillery explains; “At Irish Distillers we believe innovation will propel the category forward. Irish whiskey regulations, as set out in the Irish Whiskey Technical File, stipulate that whiskey must be aged in wood for a minimum of three years, but do not limit the wood type to oak. This means the spirit lends itself to endless experimentation. As a result, we have worked with many different wood types over the last number of years releasing whiskeys with unique flavour profiles which highlight the role played by wood in the maturation process.”
Teeling is a brand that releases a lot of single cask releases, including distillery exclusives, with each typically being driven by a desire to experiment and to innovate. “For our distillery exclusive range we have focused on using incredibly unique wood to showcase our ability to complement our blended Irish whiskey in a similar way that we marry the small batch in rum asks,” adds Teeling. “We started with Hungarian Oak, followed by Chestnut, then Chinkapin and this will be followed by Virign Irish Oak as a showcase for how exciting and diverse Irish whiskey can be.”
%%PAGE_BR%%
If 2020 will be remembered for one thing, it will be how Covid-19 turned the world on its head and caused the closure of pretty much every licensed premise in the world, leading to mass job losses, an untold amount of businesses closing down and a lot of challenging times for a lot of people.
Volumes and value will undoubtedly be down this year given the ongoing mass closure of the on-trade in virtually every country globally, but ultimately this massive dip will be short-lived with forecasts from IWSR showing that the category will be back to 2019 volumes by 2023 / 2024.
Conor McQuaid, CEO and chair, Irish Distillers remains optimistic long-term, saying: “While we are aware of the continuing challenges that the industry faces, we know from history that the Irish whiskey industry has proven itself to be very resilient. Following some serious challenges to the industry due to decades of decline and restrictions, we’ve experienced a remarkable decade of recovery and export-led growth.
“We believe that will continue, but a priority for the Irish whiskey industry over the coming months will be to consolidate and reboot sales in key existing markets for Irish whiskey, including our all-important home markets.
“With fewer people at pubs, bars and restaurants, more consumers are enjoying a drink from the comfort of their homes and as a result we have seen an increased demand for high quality whiskey with luxury credentials as people look to recreate a premium drinking experience at home. Our approach to innovation and new releases in the past year has allowed us to capitalise on this trend.”
Midleton’s O’Gorman adds: “The past decade has been an exciting time of growth for Irish whiskey. Irish Distillers has continued to lead the renaissance of the category through innovation and the development of a diverse portfolio of Irish whiskeys. Innovation has always been at the heart of everything we do. Despite the challenges presented by Covid-19, we remain committed to innovation and look forward to sharing new releases in the year ahead”, says Gorman.
One of the most well received of Irish Distillers’ innovations is the Method & Madness range with its unique maturation policies and world-firsts within their release schedule. It certainly grabs the attention and unilaterally receives praise within the industry.
O’Gorman proudly states that “the successful launch of the Method & Madness brand, and it’s continual expansion, represents our dedication to experimenting with maturation and different wood types. Last year, we introduced a limited-edition world-first; a single pot still Irish whiskey finished in Wild Cherry Wood, an exquisite release which challenged our expertise and approach to whiskey-making.”
Consumers clearly cannot get enough of what the category is doing, the new releases, brands and the general feel-good vibe from producers, and Jameson looks set to fulfil its leadership role as the category recovers from the global pandemic.
“When the bars and pubs in Ireland fully reopen, Jameson intends to launch the ‘First Round on Jameson’ initiative to support on-trade outlets in our domestic market,” concludes McQuaid while putting his AmEx behind the bar. “The scheme offers consumers the chance to claim a free Jameson, Ginger and Lime allowing the participating pub, bar or restaurant to redeem the full retail price for the drink. Many businesses across the UK have expressed their interest in participating in the scheme once venues reopen.”
