Teeling Irish Single Grain Whiskey is a good representation of a changing attitude toward what’s historically been called Irish Whiskey. A movement towards innovation and an entrepreneurial spirit of doing something different when it comes to the Irish Whiskey vertical. True Scottish Single Grain whisky has been around for a long time, so grain whiskey itself isn’t new, but it wasn’t until fairly recently that Irish Grain whiskeys started showing up on the market. Which really isn’t any sort of a surprise because the entire purpose of grain whiskey is to be mixed with single malt to make the blends Irish whiskey is famous for.
Like with their other whiskeys, the Teeling Irish Single Grain Whiskey bucks the trend of low proof and chill-filtering. Adding less water and not removing the oils gives this whiskey a nice rich flavor and texture which is incredibly surprising when you find out this whiskey is only 5 years old. Young grain whisky rarely tastes good, but the Teelings have found a way to get the most out of this young 95% corn whiskey and the answer comes from California. By aging the their Cooley made distillate in California Cabernet wine barrels they manage to coax a surprising amount of flavor into the spirit; resulting in a unique and tasty whiskey.
Teeling Irish Single Grain Whiskey Info
Region: County Louth, Ireland
Distiller: Cooley
Bottler: Teeling
Mashbill: 95% Corn & 5% Malted Barley
Cask: ex-California Cabernet wine barrels
Age: 5 years
ABV: 46%
Non-Chill Filtered
Price: $50*
Teeling Irish Single Grain Whiskey Review
EYE
Amber
NOSE
Candy sweetness (olde time candy shop), caramel, vanilla salt water taffy, grainy sweetness and toffee threaten to make this an overly sweet whiskey. Thankfully some lighter notes of nuts, dark fruit leather, spice and earth come to the rescue and balance it out.
PALATE
Caramel, grainy sweetness, vanilla salt water taffy, toffee, banana, apricot, nuts and light notes of spice, cocoa and an earthy herbal essence (not the shampoo). Like the nose if it weren’t for those lighter notes it would have been fairly one dimensional, so it’s a good thing they showed up to help right this otherwise sweets laden ship.
FINISH
Long and nutty with notes of caramel, spice, cocoa, and dried fruit.
BALANCE, BODY & FEEL
Good balance, medium body and a nice creamy feel.
OVERALL
Teeling Irish Single Grain Whiskey is better on the palate than on the nose, but enjoyable no matter which sense it’s running through. If you enjoy Scottish grain whisky it’s likely you’ll enjoy this. If you don’t enjoy Scottish grain then chances are this isn’t the whiskey for you and you should check out one of Teeling’s other Irish whiskeys like their Teeling Small Batch or Teeling Single Malt – both of which are quite tasty (especially that single malt).
On the whole the Teeling Irish Single Grain Whiskey has a boldness to it that sustains it from the nose through the finish; the wine casks seem to have tempered the harshness that can come from young grain whiskey. It’s something that I wasn’t expecting, but those casks have given it a depth that’s usually only found in much older grain whiskeys. It’s a nice, different, perspective on Irish whiskey and well worth a try.
SCORE: 85/100
*Disclosure: This sample of Teeling Irish Single Grain Whiskey was graciously sent to me by the company for the purposes of this review. The views, opinions, and tasting notes are 100% my own.
