Featured at World Whisky Day 2022: Since 2015, the Teeling Distillery in Dublin has been bringing Irish Whiskey to the world. Their peated “Blackpitts” edition, so named for the area surrounding the distillery traditionally used for malting barley, utilizes the distillery’s unique aging approach, which uses both ex-bourbon and ex-Sauternes white wine casks to impart a new and unique experience for Teeling and for Irish Whiskey in general. Bottled at 46% and with no chill filtration, the Blackpitts promises to deliver a little something new from the ashes of something old.
Distillery: Teeling
Region: Foreign
Age: NAS
Strength: 46%
Price: $74.99
Maturation: ex-bourbon and ex-Sauternes casks
Location: Dublin, Ireland
Nose: Peat, lemongrass, lemon peel, vanilla, honeysuckle, leather, tobacco, floral, mushroom
Palate: Vanilla, tea, lemon, black pepper
Finish: Tannin, tea, black pepper
Comments: Water is not needed. A dancing partner might be.
Adam – One of my favorite things about the Teeling base spirit is not only how sturdy and enjoyable it is by itself but also how incredibly well it works with additional influences, whether that is cask finishes or, in the Blackpitts case, peat smoking the barley. The lemon, vanilla and other florals on the nose are present but not before being swept up in the dance by the peat. This isn’t an Islay we’re talking about, so the influences present as different and complementary. Somehow the earth, tobacco and leather on the nose play equally with the lighter elements, each taking a turn to lead. Clearly some care was taken into crafting this cut and it shows. The palate narrows somewhat from the nose but the pepper and vanilla overtones still provide complexity that, as the group collectively admitted, is very reminiscent of tea. This isn’t a character you think you’d want in your whiskey, Irish or no, but as a tea lover and an Irish whiskey lover, I find the association a pleasant surprise. I have not usually been a fan of ex-Sauternes cask influences but here, perhaps because the finish is not supposed to carry the burden of the flavor profile, it can simply be a feather in the cap of an already complete whiskey. At the most, there is a little white wine sensation on the very end of the finish but the sensation of tea overrides.
Kate – This has a wet peat moss smell, freshly cut. This whisky reminds me of walking into the local bar in Ireland, where all the old locals are seated by 4pm, with the old wood of the bar. The door opens and you get this light fragrant breeze from outside and everyone tips their hats to the newcomer.
Bill – That is truly wonderful. I’ve always enjoyed Teeling, I’ve enjoyed it immensely. But this is a whole new level. I’m not surprised they went there but I’m really glad they did. I would love to taste this against a lamb shank. You’d get that tea, herbal quality mixed with the lamb and it’d be amazing.
This has all the qualities that I want out of Irish whiskey.
Henry – A beautiful nose of wildflower honey, citrus, and florals with an underpinning of turf, damp earth and mushroom. On the palate, warmth introduces black pepper and peaty complexity (is that pu-erh tea?) with an undercurrent of sweetness which persists into the finish, with a lovely balance of sweet and savory, black pepper and lemony sweetness.
Ben – The Blackpitts might be one of my closest friends. I think this has all the qualities that I want out of Irish whiskey. The vanilla, the sweetness, but not a corn sweetness. It’s all of that, and they manage to have the peat in there without overwhelming as well as having it stand forward as part of the character, both in the smell and the palate. The peat helps transform the Irish whiskey into that black tea. You have that feeling in your mouth, and you have that tea aftertaste in your mouth. The finish is a feeling of tea, of having had tea. You feel different.
