Slane

The Slane distillery is located in the Boyne Valley north of Dublin. It opened in 2017 on the Slane Castle estate. Slane is a family-owned castle where weddings and other festivities are celebrated. County Meath in Ireland has a good climate for growing barley, which is why many Irish Whiskeys are produced in the area. As recently as the 18^th and 19^th centuries, Meath was home to countless distilleries.

Before the distillery opened in 2017, ready matured Single Malts and Grains from all over Ireland were selected for the Blended Whiskey and matured further in Virgin Oak casks, Bourbon and Sherry casks. The maturation process remains untouched, but in the meantime the spirit is also distilled in its own distillery. In addition to the standard 'Triple Casked' bottling at 40 percent drinking strength, there is also a Batch Strength bottling. For this, the casks are blended at natural cask strength, resulting in a Blend between 61% and 63%. The bottle shape of the Slane Whiskeys is reminiscent of Slane Castle’s symmetrical design.

For Slane Whiskey, water is drawn from the River Boyne. This flows through the fields of the Slane estate, directly past the distillery. Also set on the large estate are the in-house barley fields, where some of the barley used in the Whiskey is grown. However, the yield is not quite sufficient for the amount of Slane Whiskey produced, so parts are also bought in from other farms in Ireland. At Slane, the barley is mashed in a Lauter Tun and then fermented in traditional wooden Washbacks.

The Single Malt and Pot Still Whiskeys are produced via triple distillation. There are three copper pot stills for this: two compact ones with wide necks and constrictions, and a smaller but taller still with an additional reflux bowl. The constrictions and bowls provide reflux during triple distillation, which makes the spirit particularly smooth. Distillation is supervised by Distillery Manager and Master Distiller Dr Gearóid Cahill.

Slane Whiskey is matured in three types of casks: fresh American oak casks from the Brown Forman Cooperage in Kentucky, Bourbon casks and Oloroso Sherry casks. After triple maturation, they are blended into the desired Whiskey and reduced to drinking strength.

In 2021, the estate's own small forest was planted alongside its barley fields. The 14,000 trees are not only intended to do good for the biodiversity of the area and the distillery's carbon footprint. There are also plans to one day build their own casks from the oak wood.

The history of Slane began as early as 1611, when the Scottish noble family Conyngham moved to Ireland and settled in Slane Castle. The Irish Whiskey named after the castle was launched in 2015 by the American spirits company Brown-Forman. Although the bottle design and logo of the Whiskey were already based on the same-named castle at that time, Malt and Grain Whiskeys were still being bought in from all over Ireland. Afterwards they were finished in the characteristic Slane cask combination of Bourbon and Sherry casks as well as American Virgin Oak casks.

In 2017, the Conynghams finally took the plunge in partnership with Brown-Forman and Slane Castle distillery opened on the family estate. In a huge €47 million project, the historic site was transformed into a distillery. In September, the first cask was filled in the new distillery, and since then Slane Whiskey has been produced in this purpose-built distillery. After the post of Master Distiller had been vacant for a long time, Distillery Manager Dr Gearóid Cahill was also appointed Master Distiller in January 2022.

Slane Distillery offers a range of courses and tastings, including a 40-minute tasting (€15) and a 2-hour VIP Exclusive Tour (€75). In addition, there is the option to book and attend an Irish Coffee Class and a Cocktail Class. The distillery also offers venue hire for private parties. Within walking distance there is the historic Slane Castle, which can be visited in combination with the distillery.