Teeling Distillery is the first whiskey distillery to operate in Dublin in 40 years and Dublin’s first new distillery in 125 years. While spending three days in Dublin, I toured Teeling Distillery in the Liberties neighborhood. Once home to dozens of distilleries, today the area is home to Guinness Brewery, St. Patrick’s Cathedral, and Teeling.
Once upon a time in the 1800s, Ireland made 60-70% of the world’s whiskey. Today that number is closer to 5%. Politics, American Prohibition, and a pissed off tax man who took his newly-invented column still to Scotland all contributed to its decline. But Irish whiskey — and whiskey production — is looking up. (It’s now the fastest growing spirit in the world.) Teeling Distillery is just one example.
Touring Teeling Whiskey Distillery in Dublin
Irish Whiskey, Then & Now
Like many Americans, to me “Irish whiskey” used to be synonymous with Jameson. And years ago, it practically was. And that was on purpose. Well, sort of. When hundreds of Irish whiskey distilleries began closing in the 1960s, the three major distilleries (Jameson, Powers, and Cork Distilleries) banded together to save Irish whiskey itself. They focused their efforts on promoting one whiskey to the world: Jameson. (Master of Malt has an in-depth history here.)
That singular focus worked and the Irish whiskey industry was saved. Today there’s much more to Irish whiskey than Jameson. And it wasn’t until I tried Teeling Single Malt that I truly understood that. I fell in love with the light, peppery, citrusy whiskey and was soon inspired to explore Irish whiskey.
Now there are several Irish whiskey brands I like (and I discovered even more after my trip) but Teeling remains at the top. So touring the distillery was not only exciting to see behind the scenes, but I got to bottle my own cask strength whiskey!
Teeling Whiskey, Then & Now
Brothers Stephen and Jack Teeling opened Teeling Distillery in 2015. But the Teeling story of whiskey goes back to 1782 when their ancestor operated a distillery in the same neighborhood until 1923. The Teeling logo is a phoenix to represent the rebirth of the Teeling whiskey brand.
Back in 1989 the brothers’ father, John, founded Cooley Distillery. Eventually he sold it to Beam Suntory in 2011, but negotiated to keep 16,000 casks of whiskey. That’s what Teeling sells today while the whiskey made at the current distillery patiently ages. They released their first distillery bottling in 2018, making it the first whiskey made in Dublin in decades.
Inside Teeling Distillery
At Teeling, the three pot stills are named after Jack Teeling’s daughters, affectionately called “the Three Sisters.” Alison is the first still, making a wine-like liquid known in Ireland as Poitín. The Poitín then goes to Natalie, the second still, making feints, which then goes to the third still, Rebecca. The third still produces new make spirit that is ready to be aged.
One of Teeling’s specialties is their use of different barrels for aging. In addition to ex-bourbon barrels, they use rum barrels, wine barrels, and barrels made of different types of wood. Teeling’s single malt is the only single malt in the world matured in 6 different barrels. And it took 27 tries to get the combination right!
Four Types of Irish Whiskey
There are four types of Irish whiskey and Teeling has all of them. Irish Single Malt is made with 100% malted barley at a single distillery, distilled in pot stills, much like its Scottish and American counterparts. Most isn’t peated, but some (like Connemara) are. Teeling’s single malt is aged in 6 different barrels: Sherry, Port, Madeira, White Burgundy, and Cabernet Sauvignon.
Single Grain is made with grain other than malted barley, distilled in a column still at a single distillery. Teeling’s Single Grain is 95% corn and 5% malted barley. Tour guide Conor described it as “Dublin’s tribute to bourbon.” (Since, you know, bourbon can only be made in the United States.) Teeling’s is aged in Cabernet Sauvignon casks and, according to Conor, pairs great with an Irish Red Ale.
Pot Still is a mix of malted and unmalted barley (originally created to circumvent British tax laws in the 1700s, now one of the iconic types of Irish whiskey). Teeling’s Single Pot still is currently aged for 3 years (the minimum requirement for Irish whiskey) but eventually will be aged for 6 and 9 years. It’s beautifully floral, but young on the palate. This is the first whiskey distilled in Dublin in almost 50 years!
Finally, the fourth type of Irish whiskey is a blend. Blended Irish whiskey can be any combination of the aforementioned types. Teeling’s Small Batch is a high malt blend aged in ex-bourbon and rum casks (!) and made in small batches of only 100 batches per year. It has flavors of vanilla, dried fruit, and a bit of spice, and is great for cocktails.
Fill Your Own Bottle at Teeling Distillery
The tour ends with a tasting of Teeling. You can choose from one, three, or four drams to be included in the ticket price. (Obviously I went for all four!) If you change your mind, the tour ends at the bar, called Bang Bang Bar, where you can order all of them, plus cocktails. I ordered an Irish coffee and was absolutely blown away. It was hands-down the best I’ve ever had. The secret ingredient? A stout syrup, made with stout, brown sugar, cloves, juniper, cinnamon, and star anise.
Then I got to fill my own bottle of Teeling Single Cask. The single cask is a 11-year sherry-aged whiskey that’s 60.4% ABV. It’s beautifully creamy, with honey, cloves, and caramel notes. I also couldn’t pass up buying the Distillery Exclusive, aged in virgin American oak and Hungarian oak casks. Why Hungarian oak? It’s similar to Irish oak, which is endangered and illegal to cut down. It’s such a bright whiskey, with lemon, honey, cinnamon, and green apple notes.
The Heart of Teeling is the People
Even though all whiskey distilleries do essentially the same thing (you know, turn grain into the world’s best spirit), I still enjoy touring distilleries to see the small tweaks each one makes. Those little changes create such differences in the whiskey, not to mention the people making it all put their person touch on it. It’s one of the things I love about whiskey: that there’s so much variation in it, despite all being made from grain, water, yeast, and time.
And, likewise, the people at Teeling Distillery made my whole experience fantastic. From Conor the tour guide to the bartenders and even Gregory who helped me fill my bottle, their friendliness and knowledge made me adore Teeling even more. So thank you to everyone at Teeling and Sláinte! (That’s Gaelic for cheers.)
About Teeling Distillery Tours
Teeling Distillery tours can be booked online here. The Phoenix Cafe, in the lobby of the distillery, sells sandwiches and snacks.
Related :: The Ultimate Guide to Distilleries in Ireland, How to Plan a Whiskey Trip to Ireland, and More Irish Distilleries
Disclaimer :: I was graciously treated to this tour as President of Women Who Whiskey Chicago. As always, all opinions are my own. • Some of the links in this post are affiliate links and I may receive a commission from them. Thank you for supporting the companies that support Whiskied Wanderlust.
Great post :)