The new distillery will be built on a 55-acre site adjacent to its existing facility in the town, will employ 100 people and will be fully operational by 2025.

Last week, Irish Distillers announced financial results revealing that, for the first time, its Jameson whiskey had sold more than 10 million cases worldwide in the financial year to the end of June.

Jameson is now the fastest-growing Irish whiskey in the world.

Taoiseach Micheál Martin unveiled the project which he said was of enormous economic and tourism benefit for Cork and Ireland.

“The continued success of the Irish whiskey industry is something that we can be incredibly proud of as a nation,” he said.

“Irish Distillers has played an integral role in the development of the industry. Whiskey has been distilled in Midleton for nearly 200 years, and the €250m investment will deliver hundreds of more jobs into the future, both during construction and once the distillery is operational.”

“Today’s announcement is an extremely positive development for Midleton and the wider region, and will further solidify Midleton’s reputation as the home of Irish whiskey.”

Irish Distillers chief executive Nodjame Fouad said: “At Irish Distillers we are always planning for the future growth of Irish whiskey and today is a momentous day for Irish Distillers and the team at Midleton Distillery as we announce a €250m investment plan to deliver a new, state of the art distillery which will be a carbon neutral operation.

“We are immensely proud of the continued strong performance of our full portfolio of Irish whiskeys, led by Jameson which sold over 10 million cases in our 2022 financial year.

“The new distillery will be a beautiful, landmark development with sustainability at its core and will serve to further demonstrate our commitment to Midleton and east Cork, generating more jobs for the region and further driving recognition of Midleton Distillery as the beating heart of Irish whiskey.”

The post Plans unveiled for new €250m Midleton distillery appeared first on Licensed & Catering News (LCN) - News Coverage from the Local Trade.

With Covid-19 still very much a threat, St Patrick’s Day celebrations this year are looking a little different.

Zoom parties, beers in the garden and takeaway cocktails have become de rigueur in the past 12 months, as have online gigs.

Slane Irish Whiskey isn’t letting the current restrictions stop the celebrations, mind you and is broadcasting a celebratory online concert from its County Meath distillery.

Slane Sessions takes place ahead of St Patrick’s Day, kicking off at 8pm GMT on Saturday 13 March and premiering on the Hot Press
YouTube channel.

Topping the bill is Dublin-born musician Damien Dempsey, below, whose blend of traditional Irish folk and often biting social commentary have made him a firm favourite with audiences.

Cranking it up a notch will be THUMPER, who bill themselves as “noise-pop sextet, delivering bubblegum psych through a wall of sonic death”.

Slane Castle’s part in music history is well documented, having hosted rock royalty from Prince to Queen, U2 and David Bowie over the years.

And co-founder of the Slane Distillery, Alex Conyngham didn’t want the music to be stopped by Covid.

‘A night full of life’

He said: “For St Patrick’s Day we are delighted to be teaming up with Damien Dempsey, one of the greatest Irish voices of the modern era who will take centre stage at The Slane Sessions on the 13th of March.

“Also joining the stage will be THUMPER, a high-flying Dublin sextet who have been blazing a trail in the Irish post-punk scene.

“Through this collaboration with two of Irish music’s modern giants, The Slane Sessions celebrates the meeting of tradition and innovation – guaranteeing a night full of life and bold sound in celebration of Ireland’s national day and of course, our whiskey”.

Slane has also created short videos of simple serves using Slane Irish Whiskey, inviting people to create their own little piece of St Patrick’s day at home in a cocktail. You can also access Slane’s first-ever Spotify St Patrick’s Day playlist here, which captures the St Patrick’s Day spirit and allows people to celebrate together through the sounds of Slane’s world-renowned concerts.

The post Slane Distillery won’t let Covid dampen spirits for St Patrick’s appeared first on Licensed & Catering News (LCN) - News Coverage from the Local Trade.

The Distillery Café is inside the same building in which The Copeland Distillery has been producing its spirits range since August 2019.

While it’s operating a takeaway service only for the moment, in-line with current restrictions, the venue does offer seating for 12-15 customers indoor and out. Guests and their dogs will have the opportunity to soak in the beautiful views of the neighbouring coastlines and Copeland Islands and watch the Distillery team hard at work mashing, distilling and cask-emptying.

Copeland transformed a derelict movie house in the centre of Donaghadee into its now permanent home, signing a 125-year lease and investing more than £900,000 into the project.

The Copeland Distillery was expecting to welcome thousands of domestic and international visitors this past summer in what would have been its first tourism season, but unfortunately had to close its doors to the public due to the Covid-19 pandemic.

Founder of The Copeland Distillery, Gareth Irvine, says that despite the challenges, however, the distillery has been doing its best to thrive:

‘While it’s a positive step forward from a business perspective, we never intended that we’d have to sell takeaway coffee to keep our doors open to the public,’ he adds. ‘We’ve always wanted to do a café of sorts but certainly one that offered cocktails and our classic serves.

‘While it’s just takeaway for now, I’m a huge dog lover and dogs are a huge part of Donaghadee life, so we’ll be making sure we continue to be an inviting and comfortable place for dog owners and walkers as we expand the offering.’

The Distillery Café is open from Wednesday to Sunday, 9:00am to 4:00pm.

The post Donaghadee opening defies lockdown gloom appeared first on Licensed & Catering News (LCN) - News Coverage from the Local Trade.

Michael, who founded The Bearded Candle Makers, shared his inspiring career story with guests before presenting a hands-on masterclass where attendees had the chance to make their own Black Bush-inspired keepsake candle.

An educational tasting session on some of Bushmills’ best-loved whiskeys kicked off the night, along with the chance to sample some specially-created Black Bush winter drinks throughout.

Our picture above shows Hannah and Ryan Jess at the event. Also attending were…

The post Bushmills casts a light on innovation appeared first on Licensed & Catering News (LCN) - News Coverage from the Local Trade.