It was a double whammy on the Lock-in this past week and you’ll want to watch the replay of this one!
We headed to Ireland’s only island-based whiskey distillery, Achill Island Distillery off the Mayo coast in the North West of Ireland.
The distillery is home to IrishAmerican Whiskey and founding family member Sean McKay took us on a live tour of this unique facility. Achill Island is one of the most picturesque islands in Ireland and we talked about running a distillery on an island, the area’s history and the future whiskey we can look forward to. We were even given a sneak peek of a VERY special whiskey due to be launched very soon.
This week we sipped on their two currently sourced whiskey expressions – IrishAmerican blend and IrishAmerican 10 yr old single malt during our chat.
We were also very privileged to be joined by a man who spent his childhood growing up in Kerry and who founded and now runs MHW, Ltd. a beverage alcohol importer and distributor based in New Jersey, John Beaudette. John has spent more than 30 years educating suppliers and government agencies and helping brands (Irish whiskey included) navigate the complicated Three Tier system.
John answered all our questions on why certain whiskeys are available in certain markets, how the Three Tier system of alcohol works, the challenges facing brands hoping to enter the US market and shared some stories from his long career in the spirits industry.
Tune in with your favorite Irish whiskey and get ready for the craic as we tour a distillery and chat whiskey availability across the US, on this week’s Lock-in Replay.
