Irish Gin & Tonic Fest is made possible with the kind assistance of Fáilte Ireland and the amazing Irish gin brands we are working with. Each of the brands will be hosting a special event during the festival, so please stay tuned to our social media for more details!
OUR DRINK PRODUCERS
BLACK'S OF KINSALE GIN
Black’s Gin features 13 different botanicals. Lemon Peel, Orange Peel and Fresh Pink Grapefruit peel give a fresh citrus background to complement the Juniper and Coriander. Licorice and Angelica roots combine with cinnamon to spice and balance the flavors and enhance a dry finish . Black’s Gin also features vapour infused Irish heather flowers to enrich the gin and pay tribute to its Irish heritage.
BLACKWATER NO. 5 GIN
Nose: A glorious mix of juniper, fresh citrus and herbs. Reminiscent of lavender, herbs of Provence, mint, coriander and liquorice with lemon, lime and fresh orange.
Palate : Dry and floral. The juniper is prominent but there is also a surprisingly floral element. Flavours of lavender, lemon, orange, rose, patchouli, lemon balm and gentle spice
Finish : The spiced element keeps on going, becoming more peppery and hot.
BLACKWATER WEXFORD STRAWBERRY GIN
What is more summery than strawberries? Nothing really, except perhaps sun block. We tried distilling that but it tasted disgusting, so we went back to strawberries. In all, thirteen botanicals are distilled to produce this gin, the largest of these being strawberry, as you might expect.
The berries are grown for us just outside Enniscorthy (Co. Wexford) and transported to the distillery in a large cool box. After distillation, we soak even more strawberries in our gin (that’s how it gets its colour), then we bottle it. We don’t add any sugar or sweetener of any sort.
BONAC 24 GIN
From the passion of a father and son, Bonac is handcrafted from start to finish at our family distillery in Co. Wicklow, Ireland. A blend of natural botanicals, Bonac is exceptionally smooth on the palate. While notes of Mint, Cucumber and pear deliver a fresh finish. Time spent on the East End of Long Island, in an area affectionally know by the locals as Bonac, gave Gavin the inspiration to create this perfectly balanced gin, expertly distilled and refreshingly individual.
CASK AGED CONNCULLIN IRISH GIN
Cask Aged Conncullin Irish Gin (47% ABV), currently comes in 700ml. This is our first of few limited release gins of 2018, aged for 12 months in new French Oak barrels that have been lightly toasted to drive a subtle complexity and give a delightful golden hue. Citrus notes are moulded into a rich orange with an almost pine like finish, hints of cardamom suggest a warming spice.
DINGLE DISTILLERY GIN
The Dingle Whiskey Distillery, in the old sawmills just outside the scenic town of Dingle, Co. Kerry, is Ireland’s first purpose built distillery in over 100 years. The most recent release of Dingle Whiskey, Batch No. 2, in November 2017, showcased multiple whiskies with different flavour profiles. Batch No.2 included the release of Dingle Pot Still Whiskey, a historic step for the distillery, and Irish Whiskey.
DRUMSHANBO GUNPOWDER IRISH GIN
In 2017, Drumshanbo Gunpowder Irish Gin was awarded Great Irish Beverages’ “Best Irish Gin and Tonic”, by public vote in An Púcán in Galway.
Join the team from the Shed Distillery to learn all about the Curious Journey of the Curious Mind of PJ Rigney, that resulted in Drumshanbo Gunpowder Irish Gin – slow distilled by hand using oriental botanicals an gunpowder tea.
Enjoy their entry into the Irish Gin & Tonic Fest 2018 – “The An Púcán” – featuring Drumshanbo Gunpowder Irish Gin served with fever tree tonic, and garnished with mint, cucumber, and jalapeno pepper.
DUBLIN CITY GIN
Tasting notes – A very subtle gin with broad palate appeal, robust in body, smooth and silky with a zest of citrus, tart of Rhubarb and wonderful warm spicy finish. All in all, making it respectably unusual and delicious!
ECHLINVILLE IRISH POT STILL GIN
With a unique barley neutral base spirit distilled from Echlinville’s homegrown malted barley and infused with an array of botanicals including locally foraged gorse flower petals and Strangford Lough sweet kelp, Echlinville Pot Still Gin is redefining Irish gin. Crafted from field to glass, and winning a coveted Three Stars at The Great Taste Awards 2017, few distilleries can offer a gin of such provenance.
FECKIN IRISH GIN
The Feckin Drinks company from Co Down, sets out to appeal to the ‘young at heart’ who enjoy a bit of banter with their booze. It’s a fun brand with some serious taste.
GARNISH ISLAND GIN
A deliciously elegant gin that perfectly captures the unique, exotic character of Garnish Island in Bantry Bay.
Bright floral aromas of iris, rose and hibiscus marry beautifully with hints of rosemary and thyme. Enjoy the soft, lingering glow on the finish with notes of citrus and just a hint spice. A warming, full-bodied gin.
This gin is non chill-filtered and bottled at 46% in order to retain all the natural flavours.
GLENDALOUGH WILD GIN
Our Wild Gin is a Gin unlike any other. Distilled throughout the foraging season, we capture the unique flavour of each season in the Wicklow mountains, in one bottle. Each botanical is sustainably foraged by one person our wild foodie, Geraldine Kavanagh. What is picked is placed in the still within hours of foraging. The botanicals are then slow-distilled to tease out delicate flavours by our obsessive stillman, Rowdy Rooney. We produce tiny batches, getting less than 250 litres out of each distillation.
HA’PENNY GIN
Ha’penny Dublin Dry Gin is a small batch, pot distilled gin featuring 13 expertly selected botanicals. The Ha’penny range is original, distinctive and full of personality, just like the city that inspired it. For Dublin is a city of character and of characters and is warm, witty and welcoming in equal measure. And that spirit has connected people through the years, just as the Ha’penny bridge joined the people of Dublin.
JACKFORD IRISH POTATO GIN
Jackford Irish Potato Gin is born of the rich, dark soil of Co Wexford.
Grown and distilled with passion from sip to seed, Jackford Irish Potato Gin is handcrafted to a unique recipe, a first for premium potato gins in Ireland.
Well-made and carefully balanced, the earthy creaminess of our potatoes are complimented with fresh herbs and warming spice, a smooth old-style fusion with a few hidden twists. The result is a unique and distinctive handcrafted gin that will surprise and delight.
JAMES JOYCE GIN
Our premium Irish Gin pays homage in both design and taste to his most famous work – Ulysses – a famously lovable and sometimes complex work of fiction set on a single day in Dublin on June 16th 1904 – celebrated worldwide as Bloomsday.
JAMESON IRISH WHISKEY
Jameson is by far the best selling Irish whiskey in the world. It has been tweaked over the years to make it mix well with other drinks which explains its popularity in bars and nightclubs. The blend is dominated by some light and crisp grain whiskey but also has a good dollop of heavier pot still whiskey adding some depth. Most of the ageing is done in first fill bourbon casks with only a small proportion in sherry wood.
KILKENNY CRYSTAL GIN
Crystal Clear Gin with overtones of over 12 organic botanicals. A delicious smooth organic apple gin from Highbank Orchards Single Estate spirit range, ‘from the rocks of Kilkenny’. Grown, Fermented, Distilled and Bottled with organic botanicals from Highbank Organic Farm including lavender, coriander, blackcurrant buds, and rosehip.
KINSALE GIN
Many of the botanicals used in the gin are grown or foraged in Kinsale and West Cork. When we tested recipes we distilled each individual botanical to assess its own flavour profile , how it reacted to heat and alcohol – the process developed and enhanced some aromas and tastes while it changed or diminished others. Elderflower trees are in abundance in Kinsale and its surrounds. Elderflower and elderberries are some of our key botanicals. Meadowsweet would be a lesser known and used botanical but is also plentiful in Kinsale and gives the gin a lovely honey overtone.
LISTOKE 1777 IRISH GIN
A robust and well-rounded gin with a bold taste. Jasmine provides a tree worth of blossom on the nose. Juniper appears immediately while citrus notes remain across the entire delivery. Cardamom and rowan berries provide a perfect amount of spice and heat that linger long after the last sip.
MICIL IRISH GIN
Nose: A rich and fragrant nose, zingy citrus, notes of floral heather and bog myrtle perfume – like early summer in Connemara.
Palate: A fresh burst of citrus, complemented by drier juniper notes. Sweet notes of liquorice give way to gently warming notes of spice.
Finish: the finish is clean, semi-dry, reassuringly refreshing and lingering.
MÍL GIN
Míl is an Irish pot still gin, distilled with fragrant Mediterranean botanicals and bursting with southern sunshine. The concept for Míl Gin began with a team of ‘ginthusiasts’ at the Pearse Lyons Distillery, based in the refurbished St. James Church in Dublin’s Liberties. Inspired by the links between this historic site and the Camino de Santiago in North-West Spain, where tradition has it St. James is buried, they began exploring recipes for an Iberian-Irish fusion gin. This voyage of discovery led them to Míl, the mythical Spanish warrior who’s descendants are said to have populated Ireland, bringing with them the warm flavours of the sun. Míl Gin captures the essence of this expedition, suffusing pure Irish gin with the taste of the sunny Iberian peninsula – land of Almonds, Basil, Bergamot Orange, Gooseberry, Juniper, Olive, Orris, Rosemary and Thyme.
OLD CARRICK MILL
Our small batch handcrafted Gin is delicately distilled from grain and spring water that is naturally filtered through the famous limestone of County Monaghan all the while slowly and gently collecting its unique flavour from carefully selected ingredients such as juniper, pear, and cucumber among other’s to create a fresh, smooth flavour profile that promises to truly captivate the taster, an experience that can only be relieved by another sip.
ORNABRAK SINGLE MALT GIN
ORNABRAK from the Gaelic “Eorna Braiche” (Malted Barley)
Crafted from 100% Irish malted barley and four times copper pot distilled, our unique single malt spirit is then distilled a fifth time with five carefully selected botanicals to create this complex and floral single malt gin.
Festival Event: Davy Mac’s Waterford, June 29th, 8.30 pm
A tasting of the brand new Single Malt Irish Gin hosted by brand owner Patrick Shelley of Origin Spirits. Expect some all Irish gin & tonic serves and maybe even a cocktail!
POACHER’S CITRUS IRISH TONIC WATER
Poacher’s Premium Irish Mixers is the first company in Ireland to produce all natural, high quality, low sugar mixers that all feature Irish ingredients.
Ever wondered why gin & tonic tastes so darn good?
Well this much loved pairing is a particular phenomenon because strangely enough, the chemical structures of both gin and tonic are of a similar molecular shape and hence attract each other, creating a perfectly balanced taste.
POWERS GOLD LABEL
Nose: Cinnamon, clove oil and white pepper in balance with russet apples and ripe pears, on a background of charred oak.
Taste: Cinnamon, green peppers and a touch of nutmeg combined with orchard fruits, vanilla and toasted oak. All laid upon a crisp barley core.
Finish: Long Pot Still oils and spices slowly fade to rich barley and toasted wood.
ROE & CO.
Nose: Creamy, delightfully fragrant and remarkably rounded with notes of soft spice and mellow spun sugar along with warm hints of woody vanilla.
Palate: The quality and perfect balance of the blend is immediately apparent on the palate through its velvety texture and sweet flavours including spiced pears and vanilla.
Finish: Lingering and gentle, ending with a light creaminess.
TULLAMORE DEW
Tullamore Dew is triple distilled and triple blended whiskey giving it a unmistakable smoothness accompanied by a wonderful complexity of flavours.
NOSE: Light sweet citrus and green apple combined with vanilla undertones.
TASTE: Early fresh fruit leads to a definite light spice followed by some toasted wood which evolves into a delicious vanilla sweetness.
FINISH: Medium length, buttery mellowness with a touch of marzipan accompanying the lingering vanilla.