Fitzwilliam Irish Single Malt Whiskey

This Fitzwilliam single malt from the Great Northern Distillery in Dundalk, Co. Louth takes the house's clean unpeated malt and hands the final word to beer wood, an imperial stout cask finish after initial ex-bourbon American oak maturation. It is a no age statement release bottled for the French market.

The stout casks lay dark chocolate, espresso and a faint roasted grain bitterness over ex-bourbon vanilla and orchard fruit, one of the more natural beer cask pairings in Irish whiskey given how easily malt and stout sit together. Bottled at 46%, it has the weight to carry the finish without losing the fruit underneath, and Dundalk, a brewing town long before the distillery arrived, is a fitting place for it.