Distilled and initially aged at ID’s Midleton distillery in Cork, the designated 84 casks finish their maturation in what ID hails as ‘Dublin’s only live maturation house’ beneath the Jameson Bow Street visitor centre.
It will be available from August 2019. It celebrates Jameson’s Dublin heritage by returning a part of the production process to its original home in Smithfield.
After spending 18 years in a collection of bourbon and sherry casks, the blend of pot still and grain Irish whiskeys has been married together and re-casked in first-fill ex-bourbon American oak barrels for a final six to 12 months in the Maturation House at the visitor centre. The second batch is 55.1% ABV without the use of chill filtration and will be available in 20 markets from August 2019 at the RRP of €240.
Master blender Billy Leighton, said: “As a tribute to the Jameson distilling legacy in Smithfield, we’ve introduced some methods that would have been employed in days past. The final maturation period in Bow Street is our nod to the traditional “marrying” method. We’ve put our own Jameson stamp on it by using first-fill bourbon barrels, whereas the traditional approach would be to use casks multiple times. I like to think of the whiskey getting engaged in Midleton and then “married” in Dublin.”
Simon Fay, international marketing director at Irish Distillers, added: “We had an opportunity with the launch of Jameson Bow Street 18 Years Cask Strength last year to reinforce the more serious whiskey side of the brand’s heritage. Consumers are looking for increased choice in style and quality in Irish whiskey and Jameson, as the category leader, is committed to satisfying this appetite.
“On top of that, our research shows that consumers are increasingly looking for brand experiences and the reaction that we have had from consumers that have been able to experience the sounds, aroma and aura of a functioning maturation room in the heart of Dublin has been phenomenal.”
