Whisky Discovery #79

Green Spot NAS (40% abv)
Single Pot Still Irish Whiskey
circa £36.00 70cl

Green Spot Irish Whisky

Dram #5 of the afternoon found us on the Midleton Distillery Stand and started with Green Spot.


Green Spot is a single pot still Irish whiskey, produced specifically for Mitchell & Son of Dublin, by Irish Distillers at the Midleton Distillery Cork Ireland.


It is one of the only remaining bonded Irish whiskeys, and is currently the only brand specifically produced for and sold by an independent wine merchant in Ireland.


It's not known exactly when Green Spot was first produced, but it is known that by the 1920's, Jameson's Bow Street Distillery was supplying Mitchell & Son with at least 100 sherry hogheads of pot still distilled whiskey per year.


The blend was originally known as "Pat whiskey", and the labels carried the logo of a man on a green background. This soon lead to the name "Green Spot".


When Jameson moved production from Bow St. to Midleton, the make up of the whiskey altered for the first time in living memory. This coupled with low stocks of maturing whiskey led Mitchell & Son into an agreement with Irish Distillers, whereby the whiskey would be matured by the distillery in their own casks, with Mitchell & Sons having sole rights to market, sell and develop the whiskey.

The current Green Spot is slightly younger than the original. We were told it is a blend of 7-10 year old single pot still whiskey, 25% of which has matured in sherry casks. It is not easy to find, as production is very small and most of this is sold through Mitchell & Son's shop in Dublin. As a result, it is often difficult to obtain outside of Ireland, except in specialist retailers.

Nose: Fresh aromatic oils and spices with orchard fruits and barley on a background of toasted wood.

Taste: Full spicy body. A hint of cloves along with the fruity sweetness of green apples, rounded off with toasted oak.

Finish: Lingering flavours of spices and barley.

This is one of the whiskies listed in Ian Buxton's '101 whiskies to try before you die' and so had been on my list for a while now. Out of the three I tasted it wasn't my favourite, but it was the first of three great Irish Whiskies we tasted that afternoon.