Here we find ourselves drinking Slane Irish Whiskey in October. Normally I save all my Irish whiskey for March, but I figured it would be fun to break with tradition a bit since this is a non-traditional Irish whiskey. I’m still going to attempt to do a whole month of Irish Whiskey in a few months, so don’t worry about that… if you were.
In Slane Castle’s Words: Slane Irish Whiskey
“For its introductory expression, top quality mature spirits from across Ireland were sourced, including Single Malt and Single Grain whiskeys. They were divided for further aging between three distinct cask types:
1. Heavily toasted, lightly charred virgin oak from Brown-Forman’s cooperages lends toasted oak, vanilla and chocolate notes
2. Seasoned oak that formerly held American whiskey imbues flavors of caramel, plum, butterscotch and banana
3. Oloroso Sherry casks from Spain impart notes of raisin, spice and tree nutsThe whiskeys were then carefully blended to create an exceptionally complex, smooth Irish whiskey with a distinct and memorable flavor profile. In particular, aging in virgin oak is unusual in Irish whiskey. It adds another dimension to the whiskey and makes it a more versatile spirit.”
Two questions arise from reading the above. Who does Slane Irish Whiskey source from and why did they say American Whiskey for the “Seasoned barrels”. The latter is pretty easy; since Brown-Forman owns them most, if not all, of the “Seasoned” barrels would be coming from Jack Daniels – if it was all Old Forester barrels they could just say ex-Bourbon. The second question is a bit tougher at first glance, but luckily I was able to chat with someone who works for the distillery.
Really there are only three distilleries who would have the supply to create the Slane Irish Whiskey. Cooley, Midleton (Jameson) and Bushmills. Neither one is letting a lot of whiskey out into NDP hands these days so I asked the rep a couple of questions to narrow down who of the three it was. Questions like “single pot-still?”, “twice or triple distilled”, etc. In the end they couldn’t say the name, but based on the answers (and the taste) I’m 99% sure the source of the whiskey is Bushmills.
Now on to the Slate Irish Whiskey Review!
Slane Irish Whiskey Info
Region: Ireland
Distiller: Unknown (my guess is Bushmills)
Bottler: Slane Castle
Composition: Irish Single Malt + Irish Grain Whisky
Cask: Virgin Oak, ex-Sherry, “Seasoned” barrels (ex-Jack & ex-Old Forester)
Age: NAS (3+ years)
ABV: 40%
Price: $30*
Slane Irish Whiskey Review
EYE
Amber
NOSE
Butterscotch, honied fruit, cinnamon, oily nuts, and a light bit of sherry, taffy and hay.
PALATE
Nice slow roll of butterscotch, honey, fruity taffy, nuts and a bit of sherry, cocoa, malt and a bit of grain.
FINISH
Medium fade of sherry, grain, fruit and cinnamon. Until the finish the sherry is subtle, but it really pops on the fade.
BALANCE, BODY & FEEL
Good sense of balance, medium body and a soft easy feel.
OVERALL
Slane Irish Whiskey is good. It’s a young, 40%, chill-filtered, Irish blend so it’s not going to bring you to your knees in delight, but it’s good. It’s well crafted, has a perfectly pleasant aroma and flavor and carries a unique profile in the Irish Whiskey world due to its triple cask maturation. It likely goes without saying that I would love to try this at a higher proof and NCF, but even in its current state, it’s an easy whiskey to sip and savor – especially at its $30 price point.
SCORE: 84/100 (B)
*Disclosure: This Slane Castle Irish Whiskey was graciously sent to me by the company for the purposes of this review. The views, opinions, and tasting notes are 100% my own.
Slane Irish Whiskey Review
Summary
Slane Castle Irish Whiskey is pretty good
Overall
- Nose - 84
- Palate - 84
- Finish - 84
- Balance, Body & Feel - 84
Disclosure
I’m admittingly an Aussie mongrel – Family an Irish transplant to the US, which says a lot to anyone who’s been to Boston, relocated here to Australia – ditto. In Boston, I cut my drinking teeth on Jameson and Guinness.
Say no more…
I’ve learned to love the complexity of bourbon, but, for example, when my son came of age, gifted him a bottle of Irish for his birthday.
Having said all that, I just had my first bottle of Slane, and am an instant convert.
At first blush, it satisfies the complexity, while maintaining the easy drink ability of say, JJ 12.
I just sorted what Cian’s getting for his birthday…
Cheers
Love the backstory, thanks for sharing it. Cheers, and happy early birthday to Cian!
I am a Jameson fan through and through, but the price(18$) of this caught me eye. Not as good as Jameson, but a very very close second. For the price, the taste, the smell, it’s a great whiskey. Drinking it as I’m typing. I’m pleasantly surprised with this!
Glad you’re loving it Eric, cheers!
I received a bottle of Slane for Christmas. My fist taste if it. I find is light and pleasant. I have tried almost all of the Irish Whiskeys. I still think that the Jameson IPA Edition is my favorite. But I’ve never had an Irish Whiskey that I didn’t enjoy. I drink them all neat.
A man after my own heart. Cheers Michael!
3 years is the beginning of good and for three years this is very good.
100%, Cheers Erik!
I am trying Slane for the first time tonight. My whisky experience is mostly Scotch and Bourbon. The other Irish Whisky’s I have tried have been Jameson’s and Tullamore Dew. This is better than both of those. This has a rather pleasant flavor that goes down rather easy. I am not what you would call a whisky snob as I like to get the best taste for as little money as I can so it is always nice to find a good spirit for a reasonable price as this was.
I expand far and wide, but at the end of the day we have the same goal of best taste for best price. That’s the kind of stuff I always have on hand. Thanks for sharing Richard, cheers!
I really enjoy Slane. I am fairly new to the Irish Whiskey world. What other whiskey’s are similar to Slane in taste? I have tried a couple of others, and as I am not practiced, I can’t pinpoint exactly what taste so different. Would love to know how I can branch out but slowly….
Thanks!
Hi Thomas. I’d recommend Bushmills Black first and then Jameson Black barrel after that if you’re looking for something that will be similar but also give you easy ways to branch out. Cheers!
I realize this a few years after your initial review, but I must it’s still spot on, though in the intervening two years the maturity of the whiskey has improved. After finally being able to open my first whiskey bar I have used Slane and its price point to lure more bourbon and tennessee whisky drinkers to try Irish. I will admit being hesitant to try it myself given my love of Knappogue, Redbreast and other premium Irish offerings (snob in me I spose). But the softness and ease of drinking Slane has made me a fan.
Loved reading this, thanks for sharing Richard!
Most of info is incorrect. Slane partnered with Brown Forman a few years back in order to bring their whiskey to a greater market. Slane is distilled by the Conygnham family on Slane castle grounds. The family has resided there since 1703. Thus the liquid is not at all related to any other BF brand. Also “seasoned” is a term for barrels that have been seasoned by Mother Nature and left outside to gain notes from the provenance. I’m surprised that since the family actually sent you a bottle you didn’t do a bit more background research.
Wow… you couldn’t be more wrong. I spoke to them directly and on their site it says that they sourced it. The new Slane distillery isn’t even up and running yet and once it is up and running it will be three years before anything they make can be called an Irish Whiskey. Also in this instance Seasoned means it was “seasoned” with whiskey, they’re ex-Jack barrels. All of which I confirmed directly with the Master Distiller. Sounds to me like you’re the one that needs to do a bit of research.
Good work on the review and reply, Josh.
Thanks Pat, cheers!