Irish distillery Cooley has different brands: the peated Connemara of course, Locke’s, the Greenore grain whiskey and this unpeated Tyrconnell pure pot still whiskey. Tyrconnell was named after a very successful racing horse owned by the Watt family who founded the distillery.

Like most Tyrconnell single casks at the moment, this release is 16 years old. It was bottled exclusively for Belgium, at cask strength.

Tyrconnell 1992 Ambassador’s Choice
(51%, OB 2009 for Belgium)

Nose: very fruity barley. Hints of apple pie and lemon sweets. Lively and juicy with tiny notes of freshly cut grass and mint. Apricots. Spicy undertones (cinnamon, lots of vanilla). Floral notes as well. Mouth: big, fresh maltiness with some lightly toasted accents which gives it more weight. Sweet and honeyed with banana. Interesting notes of hay and green tea. Finish: medium length, with some oak and hints of prunes.

Clean, firm and summery with a lovely nose. Around € 80 which is a heavy price for a faultless but still relatively simple Tyrconnell.

Score: 84/100