Redbreast 12 Year Cask Strength
The bloody British and their taxes.
Throughout the 18th century, the British levied a series of taxes on the distilleries of Ireland and Scotland to help fund their empire (and pay for past wars). While this led to plenty of resentment of the excisemen of the day, it also led to an innovation in whiskey that we can still enjoy now—Irish single pot still whiskey.
When it comes to styles of whiskey, Irish single pot still is probably one of the least understood. This comes in part due to the fact that it’s one of the least common whiskey styles in production today, with only a handful of brands that produce true pot still whiskey still surviving. But that wasn’t always the case. In the 19th century, Irish pot still whiskey was popular all over the world. The most popular actually, according to numerous sources.
Irish single pot still whiskey, which used to be called Irish pure pot still whiskey, and before that simply Irish whiskey, has a fascinating and somewhat tragic history, born out of tax avoidance and a thirst for affordable and quaffable liquor. If you have a few minutes and want to learn more about its history than I’m going to get into, the well known spirits writer David Wondrich published an informative piece on the history of Irish whiskey on the Daily Beast (of all places). It’s a good article, well worth reading. And if you’re looking for an even more detailed history, A Glass Apart by Fionnan O’Connor is perhaps the best current book on the subject (there don’t seem to be many books about Irish whiskey, strangely). But I’ll try to sum up the history of single pot still whiskey here, as I think it’s worth getting into before reviewing one of the best examples of the style—Redbreast 12 Year Cask Strength.
After a series of taxes imposed by the British on whiskey producers in Ireland and Scotland had not gone exactly as intended, the British government decided in 1785 to tax the heart of the matter—malted barley. In response, Irish distillers came up with a pretty brilliant way to minimize the impact of the new taxes. Instead of using 100% malted barley to make their whiskey, they began to use a combination of both malted and unmalted barley (only malted barley was subject to the new tax). The end result not only saved revenue and allowed whiskey to continue to be affordable, but also unintentionally created a unique and distinct style of whiskey.
At this point in time, Irish whiskey, not Scotch, was king. It wasn’t until the invention of the Coffey still, which led to the creation of blends (mixing single malt with grain whiskey), that Scotch began to seriously compete with Irish whiskey. By the late 19th century, Scotch was gaining ground in popularity and reputation. And then in the 20th century came US Prohibition.
Prohibition harmed the Irish whiskey industry perhaps more than any other whiskey making region or country in the world. Scotch as a whole survived and thrived after prohibition. Bourbon too. But Irish pot still whiskey was irreparably harmed and nearly lost altogether (the same can be said for rye whiskey in the US—thankfully both damaged whiskeys are making comebacks today). To save itself, the Irish whiskey industry banded together and began to produce lighter blended whiskeys, which ultimately led to what most people think of as Irish whiskey today. Fun fact: blended Irish whiskey like standard Jameson didn’t exist until the 1960s.
So what exactly is single pot still whiskey? To meet legal requirements, Irish single pot still whiskey must be distilled in a pot still from a mash that contains at least 30% malted barley, 30% unmalted barley, and no more than 5% other cereal grains (oats, rye, etc., although such cereal grains are not required). It is traditionally triple distilled, although double distillation is also acceptable. And of course it must meet other normal Irish whiskey requirements (distilled and aged in Ireland, aged at least three years in wooden casks, etc.).
Redbreast is probably the best known example of Irish single pot still whiskey. For a long while, it was the only example still standing. Today we’re seeing a renaissance of Irish whiskey, yet single pot still is still fairly uncommon, and most of it comes from the Midleton distillery where Redbreast (as well as Jameson and other popular Irish whiskey brands) is made.
While the standard 12 year Redbreast is an excellent entry into pot still whiskey, the cask strength version is on another level, as we will see in the tasting notes.
Redbreast 12 Cask Strength Review
Type: Single Pot Still
Region: Ireland
Age: 12 years
ABV: 58.2%
Non chill-filtered
Batch B1/17
Nose
Stewed fruits and fruit cobbler. A touch of sour sherry. Apricots. Candied apples. Vanilla ice cream. A bit of fresh mint, along with some spiciness.
Palate
Big, thick, creamy, and oily. So very viscous! Rich, chewy toffee, mixed with raspberries and strawberries. Nutty, with almonds especially. Amaretto. Vanilla syrup. Muscular, musty, and beefy. A hint of copper and metal—like licking vanilla icing from a metal beater. A spiciness that is hard to pinpoint, but is uniquely Irish. Overflowing with character and depth. Hearty and robust and… well, just fantastic.
Finish
Fairly long and warming, somewhat dry. Apricot. Red berries. Toffee. Armagnac. Cherry cordial.
Overall
Such a great bottle of whiskey. Perhaps THE definitive Irish whiskey. Redbreast 12 CS has a fantastically oily and huge mouthfeel, with a deceptively complex palate that’s oozing with character. Simply wonderful. If this is the type of whiskey that Ireland was producing in the 19th century, no wonder it was considered to be the best whiskey in the world.
SCORE: 9/10
Final Thoughts
I’ve been a fan of the regular Redbreast 12 year for a while now, but for some reason only just recently tried the cask strength version for the first time. I didn’t realize what I was missing. While the standard version is good, the cask strength takes Redbreast to new levels of enjoyment. I don’t know of many whiskeys that are under $100 that can compete with the complexity, texture, and character found here. It’s simply fantastic, and I’ll be sure to always have a bottle in my collection going forward.
The heartiness and muscular beefiness reminds me a bit of Ben Nevis and Mortlach, which happen to be two of my favorite Scottish distilleries. Not that they are all that similar of drams, but there are some shared traits. If you’re a fan of those single malts, you’ll probably be a fan of Redbreast (and vice versa).
Buying Advice: Like I said, I don’t know of many (or any) sub-$100 whiskeys that are better than Redbreast 12 Cask Strength. It’s simply an outstanding whiskey that’s well worth buying. A major step up from the standard expression of Redbreast 12 (which is a fine whiskey itself and worth buying if you’re on a more restricted budget).
Questions about my scoring system? Refer to the Review Method & Scoring Scale page.
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