This is quite a unique and special single pot still whiskey. Thanks to our Irish regulations our whiskey has to be aged in wood; making no one wood specific to us, hence the ability to play around. This is the main mantra for the Method and Madness range. This pot still is finished in chestnut casks sourced from the Isére region in France.
This a great example of a marriage between a good sherry bodega and whiskey producer. Enjoy and avoid adding water as it will dull it. Some Irish Whiskey is perfect straight from the bottle and this is a fine example,
…a collaboration between the master blender at Midleton Distillery and winemakers at Bodegas Lustau; the whiskey spends time in former oloroso Sherry barrels. Big, spicy flavors sweep over the palate in waves: vanilla, waxy honey, apple butter, dried apricot and dried fig, drying to chamomile tea and oak midpalate, and winding into a rich honey finish
Wine Enthusiast
METHOD AND MADNESS is a spirit brand hatched from the minds of the Masters and Apprentices of Midleton Distillery. When great minds collide, incredible creations can emerge. At Midleton, Master Distiller and an Apprentice relationship runs deep, with generations of know how meshing with restless curiosity. There will be trial, and error, and brilliant bottled breakthroughs that start with “What if?” Restless hearts making inspired spirits.
Innovation is nothing new to Midleton, but the new microdistillery has provided the copper canvas for experimentation to run free. The whiskeys coming out of this distillers’ playground provide a new taste from Irish whiskey history.
NOSE
The nose is bold but enticing with aromas of toffee, treacle bread and red liquorice. Add touches of ginger, cola bottles and chestnut to give a rather unusual yet hunger inducing nose.
PALATE
The palate is full to bursting. There are notes of caraway seeds, baked lemons, chestnuts drizzled with maple syrup and warm banana bread. The palate has so many wonderful flavours, it grows and changes each time you sip. The juiciness is amplified by the high acidity yet retains a smooth round body. Chinese pear, wilted wildflowers mix beautifully with the mandarin and sherry notes which pop as it warms, a gentle eucalyptus note rounds the palate off nicely.
FINISH
The finish has touches of salted toffee with blueberries. This edition has a beautiful long length, keep an eye out for this bottle as it has proven so popular that Midleton distillery has had to bring out a second batch, which is also delicious. You can find that tasting note here.
Where to Drink: Method & Madness Single Pot Still
Cronin’s Pub goes back to when Sean’s parent’s Jo and Denny bought the former Kennefick’s Hotel in 1970. It actually opened as a hotel by the Kenneifck family in 1892. Jo and Denny ran it as a popular bar in Cork’s favourite holiday destination of the time, ‘Crosser by the sea’. Then Sean met a Dutch lady, Thecla, who came to Ireland after finishing art college. They later married and had two children; Joleen and Denis. Thecla brought lots of ideas, enthusiasm and with her love of cooking, made Cronin’s known as a great lunchtime destination with lots of local seafood treats including chowder, mussels and oysters.
Every Whiskey Tells a Story, What Will Yours Be?
Sláinte from The Whiskey Trail
#EatDrinkExplore – by Paul Kavanagh
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