Made in our state-of-the-art distillery on Ireland’s Wild Atlantic Way, our Athrú whiskey is a thing of beauty, and the unique elements that make up our whiskey mean that it’s not just us who consider it to be the best whiskey in Ireland (although we are slightly biased). We’ve got fans ranging from actor Chris O’Dowd to whisky veteran Billy Walker, and we’re very proud of our Irish single malt whiskey, but we also know that someone’s favourite dram might be someone else’s sub-par spirit - after all, whiskey-drinking is very subjective. Here we take a look at what really determines the status of ‘best’ whiskey. 

Does age matter when it comes to whiskey? 

Often, we think of whiskeys with a big age statement as being ‘better’ - to be legally classed as a single malt whiskey in Ireland, the spirit has to have been aged for a minimum of three years, but you won’t often see whiskeys carrying a 3 year age statement as many distillers prefer to keep the liquid in barrels for longer, giving the whiskey more time to mature and adopt the flavours and aromas from the cask it’s aged in. But, it doesn’t stand to reason that a 40-year-old whiskey would always be better than a four-year-old whiskey. The way a whiskey ages has a lot to do with how it’s stored, the climate and the type of cask used. In warmer climates where the whiskey matures quicker, something carrying a large age statement might actually not withstand being matured for a very long time. And, even in countries like Ireland and Scotland where whiskey can comfortably be matured for a long time, younger whiskeys can still be delicious.

Is darker whiskey better? 

Again, much like the perception that an older whiskey is ‘better’, there’s often a view that a darker whiskey will be preferable. A whiskey gets much of its colour from being aged, so the older/better theory gets applied here too - if a whiskey is darker then it must be superior. However, this certainly isn’t always the case as the time spent in a cask isn’t the only way a whiskey develops its colour. For example, a whiskey could be aged in a sherry, Port or red wine cask - all of which will have darker wood, stained by the previous liquids, and the cask will impart some of its colour to the whiskey inside. American oak or ex-bourbon casks will hold less colour, and therefore in comparison the wood will impart a lighter colour onto the whiskey. 

The other thing to be aware of is the addition of spirit caramel colouring in whiskey, which will deepen the hue.  

Award-winning whiskeys 

We’re very proud of the awards we’ve won here at Athrú - in a relatively short space of time we’ve picked up a number of accolades, which attest to the quality and craftsmanship of our whiskey. While an award in itself can’t determine whether a whiskey is the best whiskey in the world, these prizes do offer a good indication of the standard of a whiskey. Often, the liquids are judged blind by a panel, so there’s no preconception about the liquid or the distillery. An award-winning whiskey that’s been awarded a medal (or several) can usually be assumed to be a safe bet when it comes to choosing a high-quality whiskey. But, as with everything there are some caveats - because not every single whiskey from every single distillery enters each award contest, only the best of the entrants is chosen. And, a judging panel might have very different tastes to the consumer, so what they deem to be the best whiskey still might not be the same for everybody. 

If you’d like to read more about our award-winning whiskeys, you can find out about our silver medals at the Bartender Spirits Awards and our platinum and gold medals at the SIP Awards. 

The making of Ireland’s best single malt whiskey 

We caught up with our Head Distiller, Ollie Alcorn to get his thoughts on why he thinks Athrú is Ireland’s best single malt Irish whiskey, and what makes a great whiskey drinking experience for him... 

Q: What is it you think makes Athrú different from other Irish whiskeys? 

My answer would be: casks. We’ve spent a huge amount of time, effort and money sourcing the highest quality and rarest casks possible. This has not been a solo effort - we have some great connections to the industry in Scotland and Ireland and this is what makes our whiskey special. 

Q: What checks do you have to do to ensure the whiskey you make is the best it can be?  

The process of making whiskey is a chain. Each part of the process in turn affects the next. Therefore, every single step in the process is just as important as the next. From the beginning, we closely monitor our water and utilities, for example, our steam boiler, cooling tower and water softeners.  
The raw materials we use are also of the highest standard available - we source our malt from Hook Head, our water comes from our onsite well, and we carefully select the yeast for our single malt. The plant is highly automated, meaning there is much less chance of human error and better consistency is achieved. Our recipe is dialled and it’s now down to having good operators, who are conscientious and treat each batch as if it’s the only one they’ll ever make. It has to be perfect. 

Q: What’s been your proudest achievement since working for Athrú?  

My wife choosing not to leave me while I was involved in commissioning the plant! Only joking. Having three master blenders - one of them being the mighty Billy Walker - give me the nod for the NMS (new make spirit) I’m making here. One of those blenders even now owns casks that I made.  

Q: Whiskey, and what makes it ‘the best’ can be subjective; for you, what makes a great whiskey?  

I’m a malt man; beer and whiskey are my two favourite drinks. During the warmer months, I prefer lighter whiskeys. I’m a sucker for sweet things so whiskeys with caramel, honey and butterscotch flavours are perfect for me during warmer months. During the winter however, there is nothing I enjoy more than to be sitting beside an open fire with a dram of scotch. Cask strength peated single malt or single pot still are the ultimate winter warmers for me.  

Q: What do you think is special about Irish whiskey? 

Being traditionally triple distilled the flavour is lighter and more refined. The flavours are subtle and allow the cask to be the hero. Hence the reason casks are our focus here at Athrú.    

Q: How much do factors like age and colour impact a whiskey, and the perception of how good it is?  

Big aged whiskies tend to be more mellow as the spirit has had more time to interact with the wood and change the spirit. Climate also has a big impact on this also, which is why Ireland and Scotland are ideal places to mature whiskey due to the temperate climate. Extended time in the cask can also turn the spirit overly woody which can be unpleasant. People’s perception is that longer aged whiskies are better, which is often the case, but not always - some 6-8 year old whiskey can have exceptional vibrant flavour which may be lost if it were to be left in the cask longer.  

The colour of a whiskey should give you two clues; age and cask type used. Naturally, the longer the spirit spends inside a cask the more colour it takes on from the cask. Colour is also affected by the cask type used, a red wine or sherry cask will impart much darker colour in the spirit over time than a bourbon cask, especially if they haven’t been used previously for whiskey. It’s perceived that because a whiskey is darker, it will have a more richness and depth of flavour.   

Q: Tell us about your favourite whiskey drinking experience 

That would have to be while we were installing the distillery. Our process consultant, who’s also a blender came to Sligo to check on progress. After a lovely meal at a local restaurant, we piled into the small bar at the front and lined up about a dozen different Irish whiskeys for him to try. It would have been rude for him to sample alone, so I took it upon myself to join him. By the end we were both quite drunk but had a great conversation about all the different styles of whiskey, distillery process, marketing whiskey and what made a great whiskey in his opinion. It was very informative but casual. That kind of knowledge is a gift.