Latest / The History of Ireland: Rebellion, Empire, and Independence — Fexingo History / The Irish Mist: The Story of Irish Whiskey
Transcript
- Lucas: You know, we've talked a lot about Ireland's political and military history — the battles, the famines, the rebellions. But there's another thread that runs through all of it, something that connected Ireland to the world in a really tangible way, and that's whiskey. Luna: Irish whiskey — I've heard it's the oldest whiskey in the world. Lucas: That's the claim, and there's actually some evidence for it. The Irish word is uisce beatha — 'water of life' — and it was being distilled in Irish monasteries as far back as the 12th or 13th century. Monks returning from crusades or pilgrimages brought back the technique of distillation from the Middle East, and they applied it to malted barley. By the late Middle Ages, Irish whiskey was renowned across Europe. Luna: So it started in monasteries? That's a very different image from the later distilleries. Lucas: Absolutely. The early distillers were monks, and they used it medicinally — as a cure for colds and ailments. But by the 16th century, it had become a commercial product. The English crown tried to regulate it, but Ireland was largely beyond their control outside the Pale. So illicit distilling flourished. You had these small pot stills hidden in the countryside, producing what was called 'poitín' — moonshine, essentially. Luna: Poitín — I've heard that word. It's still made illegally in some places, isn't it? Lucas: It is, but it's also legal now — you can buy it in shops, though the traditional stuff is a whole different beast. Anyway, the turning point for Irish whiskey came in the 18th and 19th centuries, when large commercial distilleries started to emerge. The most famous name, John Jameson, founded his distillery in Dublin in 1780. He wasn't actually Irish — he was a Scottish lawyer who moved to Dublin — but his whiskey became synonymous with Ireland. Lucas: Jameson was one of the 'Big Four' Dublin distilleries, alongside Powers, John's Lane, and Roe's. By the mid-19th century, Dublin was the epicenter of global whiskey production. The city was producing more whiskey than Scotland, and it was exported all over the British Empire and to America. Irish whiskey was the gold standard — smooth, triple-distilled, and aged in oak casks. Luna: Triple-distilled — that's the key difference from Scotch, right? Scotch is usually double-distilled. Lucas: Exactly right. Triple distillation gives Irish whiskey a lighter, smoother character. Scotch tends to be heavier, smokier, because they use peat in the malting process. Irish distillers also used peat, but less aggressively, and they often used a mix of malted and unmalted barley, which gave it a distinct creaminess. That style is called 'pot still whiskey', and it's what made Irish whiskey famous. Luna: So what went wrong? Why did Irish whiskey decline? Lucas: A perfect storm of catastrophes. First, the Great Famine in the 1840s devastated the domestic market. Millions of potential customers either died or emigrated, and those who remained had no money for whiskey. Then, in the late 19th century, the invention of the Coffey still — a continuous still — allowed for cheaper, faster whiskey production. But the Irish distillers, especially the Dublin ones, stuck to the traditional pot still method, which was more expensive. Scottish distillers adopted the Coffey still and started producing blended Scotch, which was cheaper and captured the market. Lucas: Then came the Irish War of Independence and the Civil War in the early 1920s. The British government imposed a trade embargo on Irish goods during the war, and after independence, the new Irish Free State imposed high tariffs on British imports, but also faced boycotts from the British market. Irish whiskey exports collapsed. And to top it all, the United States — which had been a huge market — enacted Prohibition in 1920, cutting off legal sales. Smuggling continued, but it wasn't enough to sustain the industry. Luna: So the Big Four distilleries — they all closed? Lucas: One by one. Roe's closed in 1926. John's Lane and Powers merged, but eventually closed their Dublin operations. Jameson itself closed its Dublin distillery in 1971. By the 1960s, the entire Irish whiskey industry was down to just two distilleries: Bushmills in Northern Ireland and Midleton in County Cork. And Midleton was only kept alive by a merger of the remaining Irish distillers into a single company — Irish Distillers — in 1966. It was a near-death experience. Luna: That's incredible. From world dominance to almost extinct. Lucas: And then, the revival. In the 1980s, Irish Distillers launched a global marketing campaign for Jameson, positioning it as a premium Irish whiskey. It worked — slowly at first, but by the 2000s, Jameson was the fastest-growing whiskey brand in the world. That success spawned a renaissance. Now there are over 40 distilleries in Ireland, from tiny craft operations to big new ones like Teeling in Dublin. Irish whiskey is the fastest-growing spirits category globally. Luna: It's amazing how a product can come back from the brink like that. Lucas: It really is. And you know, the story of Irish whiskey is a mirror of Irish history itself — the peaks of success, the devastating blows of famine and war, the diaspora carrying the culture abroad, and then a stubborn survival and eventual revival. It's a story of resilience. Luna: Speaking of resilience — it's funny, the show itself is a bit like that. We keep going because listeners support it. Lucas: Yeah, that's the truth. We don't run ads, and we don't take sponsorship money. It's just a handful of listeners who chip in monthly at buy me a coffee dot com slash fexingo. That's literally what funds making these episodes. And it's because of that support that we can dive into these deep cuts — like the story of Irish whiskey. Luna: It's a small group, but they make a huge difference. Lucas: They absolutely do. And it means we can keep the show exactly how we want it — no commercial breaks, no corporate influence. Just history, told honestly. But back to whiskey — one more detail I find fascinating. The recent revival isn't just about big brands. There are distilleries now experimenting with ancient Irish grains, like the 'Irish oat' or 'bere' barley, which hasn't been grown commercially for centuries. They're basically reviving the taste of medieval uisce beatha. Luna: So in a way, the story has come full circle. Lucas: Exactly. From monks in a stone hut to global dominance, near extinction, and now a craft revival. It's a story that keeps unfolding. And next time you're at a bar and order an Irish whiskey, you can think about all that history in the glass. Luna: I will definitely do that. Cheers to that.