We don’t know if you’ve noticed, but it’s been pretty warm out of late. What started out as a rather cool and wet summer has thankfully dried out - but to the extremes; this week temperatures have soared to 30C in Sligo, and weather warnings for the heat have been issued - a far cry from the flood cautions and high wind alerts we’ve been seeing in these parts.

So, the warm weather might be welcome for holidaymakers and locals who are heading to the beaches and enjoying the scenery, but what does it mean for our whiskey? Well, the heatwave presents a number of challenges for us and can make distillery life very difficult for both the humans and the machines working hard to create our single malt whiskey.

Firstly, the working conditions in our stillhouse are pretty hot at the best of times, due to the machinery being used, and heating during the distillation process. But, the heatwave outside also means we’re experiencing intense heat inside, too. The team is doing an amazing job at keeping everything going despite the soaring temperatures, but as Head Distiller Ollie Alcorn says: “We have a rapidly filling warehouse and sweaty operators! It must be 45 degrees in the stillhouse.”

We always say we have a single obsession: to make Ireland’s finest single malt whiskey, so credit is definitely due to the distillery team who still strive to craft a beautiful whiskey even in the extreme heat.

Not only does the heat put a strain on the staff creating our whiskey, it also puts a strain on the machinery we use: the condensers come under immense pressure to cool the distillate, and we've had to increase setpoints for the cooling tower to allow for the high temperatures and prevent the fans from being over-worked.

Heat also affects the whiskey maturation process. While it’s resting in barrels, the liquid reacts to its environment, and the end flavour profile derives from this - the whiskey absorbs the character from the wood, while carbon filtration and oxidation reactions also take place - and these are all affected by the external temperatures.

Hot temperatures accelerate the whiskey’s ageing process and also the angel’s share (the amount of whiskey lost from a barrel due to evaporation.) For example, in colder climates such as ours, this is usually 2% per barrel, but hotter countries producing whiskey like India can lose more than 10% per barrel.

Energy consumption also proves problematic during the heat - we use more water and therefore electricity for pumps and cooling tower fans are constantly at high speed. So, while we might save on some heating, we lose that energy through extra cooling measures.

The good news is that a short burst of hot weather might feel uncomfortable, but is unlikely to cause any lasting effects on the whiskey. Extreme temperatures in Ireland are rare, which is what makes it a wonderful place to produce whiskey. Our distillery team, being the experts they are, know how to adapt the distilling process to accommodate the heatwave.

Water shortages during the summer can be an issue affecting some distilleries, but here at Lough Gill, we’re very fortunate to be able to source water from our own onsite well, which means that we’re able to continue using it to craft our whiskey come rain or shine. Another nice consequence of the warm weather is that our energy consumption is lower too.

So, enjoy this heatwave and rest assured that we’re doing everything we can to ensure our Athrú single malt Irish whiskey will be at its absolute best when you come to enjoy it.

It’s Heating Up at Lough Gill Distillery!

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