Redbreast 21 year old completes a hat trick for Irish Distillers, but this is far and away the best Irish release of the year. It’s an immense whiskey: oily, spicy, rich, gloopy, with red berries, menthol, and citrus abundant. It’s complex, too, but you don’t have to live with it long to realize what a gem it is. And very well judged: the oak and spice suggest that these first fill bourbon and sherry casks had reached the edge of a cliff. Sensibly the strength is bang on the money, too, and almost certainly a cask strength version would not have worked. Heaven only knows if Irish Distillers can continue to raise the bar like this. It’s going to be fun watching them try though. Stunning. Again.