Ireland in a Glass: A journey through spirit, soil and stories

Some trips are about landmarks. Others are about flavours. This one turned out to be about both, and about the people who stand quietly behind the drinks the world celebrates. Last June, I travelled through Ireland as part of a Bord Bia media visit, alongside a small international group. Over several days, we crossed coastlines, cities, farms and distilleries, tracing how Irish drinks are shaped as much by landscape and history as by stills and barrels. What emerged was not just a tasting tour, but a portrait of a country rediscovering and reinterpreting its liquid heritage.

◼️SHALINI Kumar

Ireland is often described as a country you feel before you understand. The wind arrives first, salt-edged along the Atlantic coast and green-scented inland, followed by the stories. We experienced this when we landed at Dublin Airport where the light lingered longer than expected, early summer stretching the evening into a soft glow. The air felt different – lighter, damp with the promise of rain, and edged with something faintly green. It was the first hint that in Ireland, nature is never far from the story, even when the story is about spirits.

On this journey across the country, from Dublin to Cork, Clare to Leitrim, whiskey became the thread that stitched landscape, history and people into an unforgettable narrative. Over six days, our group travelled through the heart of Ireland’s modern drinks renaissance – visiting historic powerhouses, experimental newcomers, independent bonders, and even the dairy farms that supply one of the world’s most luxurious cream liqueurs. But this was never just a distillery trail; it was a cultural immersion of coastal farms, city pubs, fine dining, festivals and the quiet countryside roads.

Powerscourt Distillery – Whiskey with a View

Just outside Dublin in County Wicklow, Powerscourt Distillery sits on the grand Powerscourt Estate, framed by rolling hills and manicured gardens. The contrast between aristocratic setting and working distillery is striking.

 Here, whiskey is presented as both craft and luxury – elegant maturation programmes, careful cask selection, and an emphasis on refinement. The tasting lunch paired with whiskey, reinforcing how Irish spirits are increasingly positioned within a broader gastronomic conversation.

 Outside, the gardens rolled into the Wicklow Mountains, a reminder that Irish whiskey is inseparable from Irish landscape.

Whiskeys to Mention:

• Fercullen Falls Blend 
• Fercullen Single Malt

My Pick:
Fercullen Single Malt – elegant and fruit-forward, reflecting the distillery’s refined house style.

Jameson Midleton – The Heart of Irish Whiskey

If Powerscourt showed whiskey’s elegance, Midleton demonstrated its scale and legacy. The Jameson Midleton Distillery in County Cork is a cathedral of Irish whiskey – historic buildings, modern production and generations of expertise under one roof.

In the old still house, the preserved copper pot still stands like an industrial monument, a reminder that before global exports, whiskey here was muscle, heat and human labour

The scale is immense, yet the philosophy remains rooted in tradition: triple distillation, a balance of pot still and grain whiskeys, and a deep respect for maturation. Walking through the site feels like moving through chapters of Irish whiskey history, from copper stills of the past to contemporary innovation.

Midleton represents Ireland’s global whiskey reputation – consistency, smoothness and the confidence of a producer that helped lead the category’s modern revival.

Whiskeys to Mention:

• Jameson Original 
• Jameson Black Barrel
• Redbreast 12 (iconic Midleton pot still whiskey) 

My Pick:
Jameson Black Barrel – richer and deeper, a clear example of how wood shapes smoothness.

Where Irish Cream Flows

The next morning brought a change of pace, from still houses to open pasture. We reached a farm where the focus was milk and cream – collected, chilled and transformed within 48 hours into the rich base for premium cream liqueur, supplied to Five Farms Cream Liqueur company.

The visit unfolded on working family farms overlooking the Atlantic. Cows grazed on deep green grass, their health monitored through modern data tools even as farming traditions stretched back generations. The sea air moved through the fields, and the Atlantic horizon felt close enough to touch.

Michael Coleman, a fourth-generation Irish dairy farmer based in Carrigeen, explained that while technology now tracks each cow’s health, the real skill still lies in reading the land; knowing when grass is ready and when rain will help or hinder a harvest.

It was a powerful reminder that Ireland’s drinks industry is not just about distillation, but agriculture, sustainability and rural livelihoods.

West Cork Built by Determination

In Skibbereen, West Cork Distillers offered a different narrative – entrepreneurial, practical and proudly local. Founded by childhood friends, the distillery grew from humble beginnings into one ofIreland’s largest wholly Irishowned producers.

Scale here is impressive – extensive warehousing, in-house bottling and diverse production. Yet the spirit of West Cork remains grounded in community and approachability. It represents the modern Irish whiskey boom: ambitious, adaptable and globally minded.

The Atlantic Defining Clonakilty

Further west, Clonakilty Distillery sits in what locals call “Rebel County”. The Atlantic defines everything here – wild air, changing light and a sense of independence

The Scully family’s farming roots shape the distillery’s philosophy. Their approach combines estate-grown barley, Atlantic-influenced maturation and sustainability. Fermentation times and cask management matter, but what lingers is the sense that this whiskey is shaped by salt air, rain, coastal humidity, patient ageing and generations of agricultural knowledge. Even inside the warehouse, you could almost taste the sea in the air – a faint mineral tang that made the Atlantic feel like an invisible partner in maturation.

The result is whiskey with a story tied not just to barrels and stills, but to land and weather.

Whiskeys to Mention:

• Clonakilty Single Pot Still 
• Clonakilty Double Oak
• Clonakilty Port Cask Finish 

My Pick:
Clonakilty Double Oak – approachable yet layered, bridging tradition and coastal character.

Art of Flavours with JJ Corry

In County Clare, JJ Corry revealed another layer of Irish whiskey tradition. Rather than distilling, it curates and matures whiskey sourced from various distilleries, selecting casks to build flavour libraries as an independent Irish whiskey bonder.

The experience felt intimate and thoughtful. This reconnects modern Irish whiskey to a once-common practice, where merchants matured and blended whiskey to their own house styles. Here, flavour is the focus, with each cask like bourbon barrels, sherry casks and American craft whiskey wood contributing to a layered final product.

Lunch with Founder and CEO Louise McGuane, surrounded by casks and countryside, made it clear that whiskey isn’t only made in stills; it’s also made through patience and curation.

As Louise explained, “Bonding was once at the heart of Irish whiskey. We’re not trying to recreate the past exactly; we’re bringing that spirit of flavour curation into the present.”

Whiskeys to Mention:

• The Gael
• The Hanson
• Flintlock 

My Pick:
The Gael – elegant and balanced, showcasing the art of blending and maturation.

Botanical Imagination at The Shed Distillery

Travelling north to Drumshanbo in County Leitrim, The Shed Distillery of PJ Rigney felt like stepping into a storybook of experimentation. Copper pot stills gleamed inside a distillery that blends Irish tradition with global botanical influence.

Outside, the surrounding countryside felt quiet and almost theatrical with mist clinging to distant hills, inviting both reflection and invention.

Best known for Drumshanbo Gunpowder Irish Gin, The Shed also produces single pot still whiskey with oats in the mash bill, a nod to old Irish styles. The distillery embraces the idea of curiosity, exploring flavours and techniques beyond convention.

Gins to Mention:

• Gunpowder Irish Gin (Original) 
• Gunpowder Irish Gin with Sardinian Citrus
• Gunpowder Irish Gin with California Orange Citrus 

My Pick:
Gunpowder Irish Gin (Original) - delicate green tea backbone and bright spice delivering exotic and distinctly Irish experience.

Dublin’s Whiskey Revival with Teeling

Back in Dublin, Teeling Distillery symbolises the capital’s whiskey revival after more than a century’s absence. As the city’s first new distillery, Teeling combines heritage with modern urban energy.

Innovation is central. Non-chill filtration, varied cask finishes and a willingness to push boundaries define the Teeling approach. Touring the distillery showed how Dublin is reclaiming its place in Irish whiskey’s story, not by copying the past, but by reinterpreting it.

Whiskeys to Mention:

• Teeling Small Batch 
• Teeling Single Grain
• Teeling Single Malt 

My Pick:
Teeling Single Grain – distinctive, with wine cask influence shaping a modern Dublin style.

Rebel City’s Cross-continental Gin

Back in Cork city, inside a repurposed former Ford factory, Rebel City Distillery offered a different kind of narrative. The building once housed car assembly lines. Today it houses copper stills and botanical experiments.

Here, Maharani Gin bridges Ireland and India. Founded by Robert Barrett and his wife Bhagya, originally from Kerala, the distillery draws on Indian spices and citrus alongside Irish distilling craft. In a country often focused on whiskey heritage, Maharani stands out as a story of migration, collaboration and modern identity, proof that Ireland’s drinks culture is evolving as its society.

Spirits to Mention:

• Maharani Gin 
• Maharani Pomelo Vodka
• Absinthe 

My Pick:
Maharani Gin – the Kerala botanicals making it memorable.

Guinness Storehouse – A Symbol of Dublin’s Identity

On the last day of our tour, we visited the Guinness Storehouse, a reminder that Ireland’s drinks heritage stretches far beyond spirits. Housed in a former fermentation plant at St. James’s Gate, the experience traces the journey of Guinness from its four essential ingredients – water, barley, hops and yeast – to its place as one of the world’s most recognisable beers.

Moving through the multi-storey exhibition felt like stepping inside the anatomy of a stout. The aromas of roasted barley lingered in the air, interactive displays explored brewing craft and advertising history, and stories of coopers, brewers and workers revealed the human effort behind the brand. Guinness is not just a drink here; it is part of Dublin’s identity.

At the top, the Gravity Bar offered a quiet pause. With a freshly poured pint in hand, we looked out over Dublin’s rooftops stretching towards the Wicklow Mountains. After days spent tracing whiskey back to land and people, this felt like a fitting final perspective, a reminder that whether brewed or distilled, Ireland’s drinks are shaped by place, pride and history.

Every Glass Tells a Story

Between distillery visits, Ireland itself became part of the itinerary. No visit to the west would be complete without the Cliffs of Moher. Standing at the edge, looking down at waves grinding against rocks hundreds of feet below, it was easy to understand why Irish drinks so often speak of “wild” landscapes. The cliffs were not gentle or picturesque; they were dramatic, elemental and slightly intimidating, much like the Atlantic maturation stories told by several distilleries.

Ireland’s drinks are inseparable from its social life. We spent an evening bar hopping in Dublin, blending live music, conversation and pints into a familiar rhythm. At the Taste of Dublin festival, chefs and producers of whiskey, beers and other products showcased the country’s evolving food culture – modern, confident and deeply rooted in local ingredients.

By the end of the journey, the pattern was clear. Irish drinks are shaped by three forces: landscape, history and its people. What makes the Irish story compelling today is not just revival, but reinterpretation. Tradition is respected, but not frozen. Innovation is welcomed, but rarely detached from place.

In every glass, whether whiskey, gin, stout or cream liqueur, there was a sense that Ireland is not merely producing drinks, it is telling stories about land, resilience and identity. And for a traveller willing to follow those stories, the country reveals itself not in monuments or museums, but in moments shared, poured and savoured one sip at a time.