Food & Wine reported on Thursday that Midleton Distillers released a 50-year-old Single Pot Still Irish Whiskey, breaking the record for the oldest single pot still Irish whiskey. The whiskey is from Midleton’s Silent Distillery Collection, and it has a shockingly high price tag of $60,000. It has an ABV of 53%.
Midleton’s 50-year-old Irish whiskey is called “The Last Drops,” and the liquid spent the first half of its life resting in four ex-bourbon American oak barrels. Eventually, the liquid that was left in those barrels was married then moved to a single cask that was custom-built by Master Cooper Ger Buckley. It was then transferred to a final aging cask that implemented staves from the other Silent Distillery whiskeys.
“As for this exceptional whiskey, I feel immense pride and excitement in unveiling these last, precious drops,” Midleton Master Distiller Kevin O’Gorman told Food and Wine. “There is a balance of aged oak influence with fresh fruit notes that can be challenging to achieve in ultra-aged whiskeys, which I hope those lucky enough to enjoy it will find a remarkable surprise. I truly believe we have encapsulated the essence of Old Midleton in this ultimate expression.”
From a packaging standpoint, the whiskey is housed in a mouth-blown decanter crafted by House of Waterford. The bottles are packaged in wood cabinets made by Irish Master Craftsman John Galvin.
Midleton’s Silent Distillery Collection is a line that celebrates the Old Midleton Distillery. Old Midleton Distillery was a working distillery that launched in 1825 and shuttered its doors in 1975.
The collection launched in 2020, and Midleton released one whiskey a year with 46-, 47- and 49-year-old age statements. This release is named “The Last Drops,” which is meant to pay homage to the fact that the liquid inside is quite literally “the very last drops to be released from legendary Old Midleton.”
The Pernod Ricard-owned parent company behind Midleton, Irish Distillers, is the whiskey arm behind popular brands like Jameson and Redbreast. In March, the company announced that it would temporarily halt production of whiskeys in April and pick things back up in the summer. The company shared that it remained “absolutely committed” to providing “sustainable global growth” in what appears to be an increasingly uncertain global landscape.
Whether that might increase the value of this whiskey remains unclear, but the whiskey’s rarity is undeniable – just a few will be available to specialized retailers around the world.
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