A cheap Irish blend to celebrate the fact that St Patrick’s day is just 193 days away!
This triple distilled Irish Whiskey is produced at the Middleton distillery in Cork, where they also produce Jameson, Red Breast, Tullamore Dew, Green Spot and Powers.
Blended, unusually, using all three styles of Irish whiskey: single pot still, single malt and grain. First produced in 1779, it wasn’t until 1913 that it changed it’s name to Paddy after legendary salesman Paddy Flaherty. Before that it had the rather catchy name of “Cork Distilling Company Map of Ireland Old Irish Whiskey”. It is sometimes compared to Jameson and Bushmills but is harder to source outside of Ireland (where it is the 3rd best selling whiskey).

http://www.paddy.ie/paddy.html

Cost: £20
70cl / 40% abv

Tasting Notes*

Nose: Oily and fresh. There are floral notes and cereal grains. Plenty of fruit. Fresh vanilla and honey, nutty (think of almonds and hazelnuts), oaky and dried grassy notes.

Palate: Sweet and of medium-body with toffee and cereals, a rosewater note with a little butterscotch and vanilla.  Mild, soft and light with the mellow malted barley and vanilla again particularly prominent. Honey and coconut, more grassiness, toasted almonds and warm woody spice.

Finish: Spicy and dry with a little black pepper and oak. The finish is soft, sweet and very malty and grainy. The finish lingers for a good length of time considering the general lightness of the whiskey.

*Tasting notes from Whisky For Everyone, Whiskey Reviewer and Master of Malt.

Packaging

For what is essentially a cheap whiskey, it was surprising that this came in a metal tin, with a sliding front, which my girlfriend is now using it to keep her sewing things in.

Verdict

Surprisingly pleasant to drink. Not at all bad. For us it is a respectable 3rd behind Jameson and Bushmills, but it rightly has plenty of friends and admirers.