Blue Spot
There’s something about the “Spot” range of Irish whiskeys that’s always appealed to me. Back in my early days of whiskey exploration, I became aware of Green Spot, but it was a bottle unavailable in the US at the time, and I was unaware of any place I could purchase it online. I watched a Ralfy review about it and read several articles online on its story. The history of Green Spot fascinated me, as well as the fact that you could at that time only find it at a handful of places in Ireland and the UK. It was a bottle I didn’t ever expect to be able to buy. After all, it was made specifically to be sold at a merchant in Ireland, so unless I managed to take a trip to Dublin, I didn’t expect I’d ever be able to get ahold of a bottle.
And then suddenly Green Spot became available. I remember being thrilled the first time I saw it at a local store, and quickly grabbed a bottle to take home. It didn’t disappoint. In those early days of my whiskey journey, it was the best Irish whiskey I’d tried.
The Spot whiskeys originated from Mitchell & Son, originally a bakery and confectionery shop established in 1805 in Dublin, Ireland who soon expanded into wine and spirits. Mitchell & Son purchased whiskey in bulk from Jameson and matured it in their own casks to sell in their store, a common practice for merchants at that point in time in the early 19th century. While eventually merchant whisky became more or less obsolete as whisky distilleries and other big producers began bottling their own products, the Spot whiskeys survived well into the 20th century. The range of Spot whiskeys, named after Mitchell & Son’s practice of labelling their casks with a spot of paint, eventually included four colors differentiated by age—Blue Spot (7 years old), Green Spot (10 years, although now NAS), Yellow Spot (12 years), and Red Spot (15 years). As Irish whiskey began to fade in popularity in the mid 20th century, most of the Spot range disappeared. Only Green Spot, the most popular of the range, survived past the middle of the 20th century.
As Irish whiskey, just like all whiskey, has enjoyed a resurgence in recent years, Mitchell & Son partnered with Irish Distillers (owners of Jameson and other major Irish whiskey brands) to expand Green Spot to a global audience. Green Spot quickly found popularity with whiskey drinkers looking for a quality Irish single pot still whiskey, and as a result the other Spots began to be relaunched. First Yellow Spot in 2012, then Red Spot in 2018, and now finally the range is whole once more with the reintroduction of Blue Spot, this time as a cask strength version aged in a combination of bourbon, sherry, and Madeira casks.
Just like I was thrilled the first time I was able to buy Green Spot, I was pretty damned excited to hear about the launch of the cask strength Blue Spot. Unfortunately at this time, Blue Spot is a limited release that has proven difficult to acquire. It is available in the US, but in very limited quantities—I was lucky to get my hands on a bottle. Hopefully with the seeming success of the initial Blue Spot launch, Mitchell & Son will make more bottles available in the next batch. Stay tuned for that.
Even though Green Spot has become fairly ubiquitous at quality liquor stores in the US, it still holds a place of exclusivity in my mind. And given that Blue Spot actually is fairly exclusive, well, I guess it revives the excitement all over again. But the important part remains to be seen… is it good? Let’s find out.
Blue Spot Review
Type: Single Pot Still
Region: Ireland
Age: 7 years
ABV: 58.7%
Non chill-filtered
Nose
Big and powerful. Initially a bit restrained, but opens up with a few drops of water. Fresh baked bread. Orange peel. Marmalade. Spices. Sweet mint. Dark chocolate. Sweet floral notes, like walking into a greenhouse while eating cotton candy. Yes, definitely some cotton candy on the nose. Really lovely, once water is added.
Palate
Classic Irish pot still, robust and grainy, with an underlying sweetness. Like the nose, water is required to bring out the complexities. Orange liqueur and milk chocolate… actually it really reminds me of Terry’s chocolate orange balls (haven’t had one of those in years, but that flavor is unmistakable). Old fashioned hard candies. Skittles. Dried tropical fruits. Allspice and black pepper. Vanilla. Lavender. Buttery. Nutty—almonds, cashews, and macadamia nuts. A slight hint of anise. Really nice balance between sweet and dry, fruit and spice, with layers of complexity. The Madeira cask influence is clear, although not overpowering, with the bourbon and sherry casks offering nice balance.
The texture is full and creamy, a bit oily.
Finish
Fairly long. Sweet wine. The sweet florals from the nose return. More of the nuts. Mint. The spice becomes more prominent, especially nutmeg.
Overall
An excellent example of Irish single pot still whiskey. Big and robust, with a good amount of complexity, a wonderful nose, terrific balance, and quality cask influence. Superbly well blended between the different cask types. Surprisingly mature for its age (note that Blue Spot supposedly is a blend of casks ranging from 7 to 20 years of age, which is completely believable, as there is a nice maturity in this dram). If I have any real criticism for this whiskey, it’s that there’s just a little more sweetness than I like in a dram. Just a little.
The Madeira cask influence works well. I often don’t care for whiskey aged in Madeira casks, as it tends to result in a sickly sweet final product, but here it works harmoniously with the spirit and other casks, even if it does give the whiskey a bit more sweetness than I typically prefer.
All in all, Blue Spot is a unique and welcome addition to the Spot range.
SCORE: 7/10
Final Thoughts
As I said in the intro, I’m still a bit fascinated and smitten by the Spot whiskeys, and Blue Spot really scratches the one itch I had—a cask strength Spot. I’m enjoying this bottle wholeheartedly.
What I’ve come to love about the Spot range is how each of the four colors offers something unique. Green Spot is a great introduction to Irish pot still whiskey for newcomers to the style. Yellow is a wonderful step up from Green, offering more complexity and strength. Red takes things to another level with extra age and wine cask influence. And now Blue gives the range a real bruiser, but with a sweet and floral side to keep things balanced. The Spots are truly one of the most interesting and unique ranges found from any whiskey producer, be it Irish, bourbon, scotch, or anything else.
Which is my favorite of the range? Hmm, that’s a tough one. I guess you could say I’ve evolved past Green Spot, mainly due to its low ABV, but between Blue, Yellow, and Red… I don’t know, that’s a tough call. Yellow is such a good standard for Irish whiskey, it’s tough to beat. That said, I’m really digging Blue Spot. It’s a fun whiskey, and it just might be my new favorite of the range.
Buying Advice: Blue Spot is a little pricey at around $100 for a bottle, but for those of us who really enjoy a good Irish single pot still whiskey, it’s a worthwhile purchase. If you can find a bottle, I recommend taking it home.
Questions about my scoring system? Refer to the Review Method & Scoring Scale page.
For more reviews, check out the Whisky Review Archive.
