The series continues! All the classes about whiskies are online now. Today, we will zoom on Irland with two specificities one can find only there. Let’s dive!
The mash bill
Irish whiskeys often mix malted and unmalted barley in their ground recipe.
Three distillations
Irish whiskeys are often distilled three times.
1. The wort/wash is heated in the first still (a wash still).
2. Then we move on to the second still (“still for low wines” or “feints still”) where more impurities are removed and the tails are collected.
3. The tails are then taken to a third still (alcohol still) where a further refining of the alcohol is carried out. The result is the production of a colourless alcohol with a high alcohol content.
It is this third distillation that gives Irish Whiskey its different taste, purer and lighter than Scotch Whiskey which is distilled twice. However, there is no rule that requires triple distillation.
Please check it here, should you want to read the whole class.
