A whiskey as individual as it is exceptional

OUR SINGLE
MALT

Burren Distillers revives Sean Gael heritage whiskey-making by creating a super premium spirit which predates contemporary expressions of Irish whiskey. Sean Gael can be translated to Old Irish, indigenous or native.

Water

Fresh water is key to the development of the Burren, from rivers that once flowed into long gone seas 300million years ago to the colossal sheets of ice that carved out our valley 20,000 years ago to the soft Atlantic Ocean rain, which is an almost a daily occurrence, to the underground waterways that flow to our well down the mountain side and through mystical underground caves. It’s easy to see how JRR Tolkien’s curated elements of this other worldly magic in his writing of Lord of the Rings while in the Burren. We like to think our whiskey also connects us to middle earth and the revival of lost spirits!

Barley

Our passion for the indigenous has made us relentless in pursuit of authenticity. That lead us to Joe in Oranmore. He sows, grows and harvests our heritage barley. We carefully floor malt this barley on site in the traditional way. It is a labour of love. It allows the flour used to be at its freshest, unlike other distilleries. We know you will taste the difference.

Barrel

We chose Irish sessile oak casks, which translated in Gaelic is Dair Ghaelach. This is the traditional Irish oak species. Once these were widespread throughout Ireland but centuries of harvesting, with few trees being replaced, means truly native oak can be hard to find. Still we seek them out sustainably, age them with sherry and utilise them for mashing, fermentation and cask maturation.

Ancient Method

Corcomroe Abbey is a 13th century Cistercian monastery to our east. The abbey appears in W.B. Yeats’ play The Dreaming of Bones. Their on site distillery and their methods inspired our revival of distillation in this our area of the Burren.

Stills

Our stills are made from copper. Inside and out. The longer the contact with copper the greater the retention of flavour from the distilled liquor.

A WHISKEY LIKE NO OTHER

AN EXPERIENCE
TO SAVOUR

Modern whiskey was shaped by considerable changes in distilling and maturation strategies during the 19th century. Burren Distillers stay true to Sean Gael production, an original Gaelic method rooted in the 13th century. Our manual techniques, traditional equipment and willingness to let nature take its course, make our process deliberately slow and extremely rewarding. The outcome is a spirit of another time and place, a revival of an ancient profile: complex, round and deeply satisfying.

Uniquely Handcrafted

Other whiskeys can use malt mash or barley sourced outside of Ireland which affects the flavour profile of the whiskey produced as the mash used is not fresh due to time in transit. We have maximised the flavour profile by creating our own mash using traditional tools and methods onsite. Other distilleries use stainless steel vats for mashing and fermentation and apply an industrial process which uses chemicals and additives to achieve volume as the main objective
Volume is not our main objective
Excellence and authenticity are. They drive this distillery in this passionate revival.

Expect the unexpected

From the honeyed nose to the complex symphony of flavours and lingering finish, this whiskey captures The Burren’s unique terroir.

The youthful spirit of the whiskey’s heart naturally matures to deliver an exquisite honey sweetness with underlying hints of oak. Notes of almond are perfectly balanced with the gentle tang of fruit flavours and complimented by the ever-present but subtle taste of vanilla.

Maturation

Aged over 5 years in Irish oak barrels, each year adds a new dimension to the nose, taste and finish of this exceptional whiskey.

We source our barrels from a Bodega of Sherry in Montilles, Spain Not just sustainable, the added benefit that comes as a result is that the barrels are beautifully aged with Sherry. These barrels follow a similar tradition employed by Galway distillers in 17th, 18th and 19th century. The residue of Sherry in the Oak imparts sweet and fruity notes. Anyone who enjoys a good Velvet Old Fashioned, as we occasionally do, will understand how well these profiles dance together, one enhancing the other, in perfect syncopation.