Though the use of virgin oak is not uncommon in scotch, Midleton is the first modern distillery to produce a virgin Irish oak-finished single pot still whiskey. Foresters carefully select a small number of oaks to be felled from woods on well-managed Irish estates. The oak travels to a cooperage in Spain to be quarter-sawn and seasoned for 15 months before the barrels are raised and returned to Midleton Distillery. in County Cork. The third release of the highly collectible Dair Ghaelach series comes from seven trees grown in Knockrath Forest in Co. Wicklow, which yielded 42 barrels. These were filled with single pot still whiskeys matured in American oak, ranging from 15 to 28 years old, and finished in the virgin Irish oak casks for up to 2 years.
The latest chapter of the Midleton Dair Ghaelach story takes us to the beautiful and ancient Vale of Clara, where the Knockrath estate lies hidden amidst the dramatic landscape of mountains and lakes.Dair Ghaelach is Gaelic for Irish Oak. The distillates in this expression range from 15 year to 28 year whiskey. Dair Ghaelach is one of the first whiskeys in modern times to be matured in home grown Irish Oak. This is
the third edition of this series.