Busker Single Grain Irish Whiskey Review

The first component of the Busker Triple Cask we’re looking at is the Busker Single Grain Irish Whiskey. The backbone of moat non-blended malt blend in the world, grain whiskey is a workhorse in the whiskey industry and rarely gets the spotlight.

While Ireland isn’t traditionally known for single grain whiskey, it’s a category of growing interest thanks to releases like Egan’s Vintage Single Grain and Teeling Single Grain. While none of these releases touch the 20, 30, 40+ yo releases that we regularly see from the Scotch world, they are interesting thanks to the casks used.

Busker Single Grain Irish Whiskey – Details and Tasting Notes

Whiskey Details

Region: Ireland

Distiller: The Busker
Mash Bill: Mixed grains (mostly corn)
Cask: ex-Bourbon, ex-Marsala
Age: NAS (4+ years)
ABV: 44.3%

Non-Chill Filtered | Natural Color

Price: $30*

White background tasting shot with the Busker Single Grain Irish Whiskey bottle and a glass of whiskey next to it.

“The secret to our Single Grain is in choosing the highest quality spirits and maturing them in our hand selected Bourbon casks from USA and rare Marsala cask from one of the oldest Sicilian wineries – Cantine Florio 1833. The Busker Single Grain is a light, pale straw colored whiskey. The taste begins by offering sweet caramel and moving to soft vanilla and oak notes. On the palate you will experience notes of caramel, vanilla, oak and hay. The finish is a long, dry and sweet.” – The Busker

Tasting Notes

EYE
Honey

NOSE
Coppery/metallic/mechanical, green apples, honey candy, taffy, cocoa, cereal sweetness, touch cinnamon and white chocolate.

PALATE
Banana chips, white chocolate, dried orchard fruit, ash, earthy/grainy and touches of spirit, oak, dried coconut and metal.

FINISH
Short -> Dried apples and bananas with a subtle dessert sweetness.

BALANCE, BODY and FEEL
Ok, light, simultaneously watery and sharp

Busker Single Grain Irish Whiskey – Overall

Aroma has this strange fruitiness that goes from oily to dried to stale and back again while sitting on a metallic/mechanical platter with bits of dessert sweetness floating around; Palate is almost cloyingly sweet but pulls back from that line thanks to some of the earthy notes and loses most of that metallic ping; Finish is done in a flash and leaves a banana chips note.

It’s ok.

Busker Single Grain Irish Whiskey – Final Thoughts and Score

It takes a lot to make a grain whiskey stand alone. Even from the venerated grain distilleries in Scotland, the good ones don’t hit their stride till 20+ years. It’s not an easy spirit to make tasty, especially at a young age, so the fact that this is drinkable is… astonishing.

That said, I’m not a fan. I’m not getting any real richness and it has this sharpness and metallic quality to it I just can’t get over. It’s far from the worst grain whiskey I’ve had so I’ll say that they’re on a good path with the Busker Single Grain Irish Whiskey and leave it at that.

SCORE: 2/5

*Disclosure: The bottle for this Irish Whiskey review was graciously sent to me by the company without obligation. The views, opinions, and tasting notes are 100% my own.

Busker Single Grain Irish Whiskey Back label

Busker Single Grain Irish Whiskey Review $30

Summary

Grain whiskey is a tough nut to crack and so having it deliver as well as it does at this age is pretty remarkable. Though it’s still not something I’d reach for.