With the excitement surrounding whiskey at an all-time high, we’re constantly inundated with questions about the next big thing. Single malt whisky fans are constantly searching for the next great cask. Bourbon fans continue to hunt liquor stores from coast to coast in search of the elusive Pappy Van Winkle. However, the next big thing for whiskey fans just hit American soil this week and the anticipation has been building for some time. The next big thing for whiskey drinkers isn’t a single malt or an American whiskey, but rather a pot-distilled Irish masterpiece. For the last few years we’ve been fielding numerous phone calls and emails from customers who have heard about, read about, or tasted something called Green Spot — a traditional Irish whiskey that’s acquired a cult-like following abroad. We’re now happy to report that, after years of saying “we’re sorry, but that whiskey isn’t available in the United States,” Green Spot has finally landed in California, just in time for St. Patrick’s Day. It’s going to take American by storm and it’s going to sell very, very fast.
Green Spot Single Pure Pot Still Irish Whiskey 750ml ($44.99)
The elusive Green Spot Whiskey is finally here. This legendary whiskey is partly responsible for the resurgence in popularity of pure pot still whiskey, the traditional Irish method of whiskey production. Green Spot began as the house brand for a Dublin wine merchant Mitchell & Sons. After consolidation of the Irish Whiskey market, Mitchell & Sons negotiated an agreement to be provided a small quantity of whiskey to support the brand. The current blend consists of 8-9 year old whiskey of which 25% is aged in sherry casks. Fewer than 1,000 cases are produced a year.
David Othenin-Girard | K&L Staff Member | Review Date: March 17, 2014
Green Spot has been the holy grail of Irish Whiskey since my start in this business nearly 10 years ago. I remember a famous restaurant in Los Angeles used to display a bottle on the bar (smuggled illegally) but refuse to pour it unless you owned the place. When I finally convinced them to let me taste, I finally understood why everybody made such a big deal out of it. The legacy of the prominent Dublin wine merchant, Mitchell & Sons, who’d matured and bottled those original stocks of sherry cask pure pot still whisky, is solidly considered one of the world’s great whisky. Today it’s aged at Midleton to a specific recipe, from one of the distillery’s 3 pure pot still recipe. This is not a smack you in the mouth powerful whiskey like the red breast cask strength. Instead it’s supple and soft and drinks like a dream. This is probably why Irish Whiskey was the best selling whisky before prohibi tion and they responded to the popularity of blended scotch with consolidation and the creation of blended Irish, a style Irish distillers had resisted until the 1970s. We bought all we could get and have no clue when we’ll be getting more.
K&L Wine Merchants
http://www.klwines.com
Phone: 877-KLWines (toll free 877-559-4637)
Email: wine@klwines.com
San Francisco, Redwood City, Hollywood CA