Tuesday, December 18, 2012

Tullamore DEW


OH LOOK - I'm blogging??? Good grief.....sometimes life takes over and the easiest way to survive is to just strap yourself in and hold on right?
 I am FINALLY getting this post up that I started a month ago! My apologies to all involved.

anyway.....it started with this note:

".....we have set this Toast and Taste and interview for you with the Brand Ambassador for Tullamore DEW Whiskey to be Tuesday at 6:30 at Pour House restaurant.....thank you....."


How I actually read that note???



"................................Whiskey...................6:30........................"

Yes.....I love my whiskey so this was - hopefully - not going to be a difficult assignment in any way. I did bring a friend along just in case this whole event was a total drag. Did I actually need her? Yes! We had such the awesome evening with Tim Herlihy (the Rep). We tasted some fantastic whiskey. And we gained quite the education on Tullamore DEW. (did I mention we tasted some fantastic whiskey???)
I will do my best to share with you here some of the points Tim made and some thoughts on the flavors.

".....drink this and you'll enjoy me more....."
TH


To start the evening, Tim poured the Green Label (bottle on the far left in the above photo)

I think this one is my favorite. Tullamore DEW recently re-did the label here so people like you and I have a better understanding of the name and the history of the man that really got this distillery in motion.
Tim poured this and said something about ".....moisture in the grass on a wet Irish morning..." in that lovely brogue of his. It was definitely a moment that took me back many years to my time living in Ireland. 
This bottle was described to us as smooth, sweet and friendly.
I have to agree - definitely the star of this show as far as I'm concerned.
Triple-distilled (grain, malt and pot-stilled), citrusy, aged 4 to 7 years in bourbon casks give it the honey, vanilla whisper...delicious...
He called this ".....the sipping whiskey....."
Be respectful.

".....this one is the Rookie Whiskey....it still has enough interest and intrigue to please the Whiskey drinker, but is also very soft and delicate...this is usually the crowd pleaser..."
A good bottle to take to a party.

The Toast here:

may you be poor in misfortune,
rich in blessings,
slow to make enemies quick to make friends.
but whether poor, rich, quick or slow
nothing but good times and happiness from this drink forward

Tim called this bottle the Bigger Brother of the original. Soft and smooth. Also a triple blend.

And then a little whiskey lesson:
single = from one distillery
malt = barley soaked in water then tricked into thinking its spring and begins to germinate, converts starch into sugar, add yeast, alcohol....basically malt = barley
This bottle has mostly 12 year old liquid in it, but makers are required to name the youngest alcohol - therefore the Number 10 on the label.

Next up was the Malt and a little trick. Pour a bit in your glass, seal the top of the glass with your palm, shake the glass until your palm is completely wet.
Put the glass down then quickly rub your hands together until they're sticky.
At this point you can also threaten the rep with big, big trouble if you get pulled over on the way home!
Anyway, how do your hands smell?
Little bit of honey and vanilla?
".....so guys, this is Irish aftershave....."
(he was hilarious)
The hand trick above burns off the alcohol leaving you with the subtle aromas and all the secret flavors. And then taste...from the glass...we were admonished to NOT lick our fingers and palms since we were in public...
The Toast here:

 a ladies toast.....

here's to the men we've loved,
and to the men who loved us
if only they were the same, glasses up
but f***the men and here's to us

I think he actually dared me to post the above toast here?

This Malt was actually my least favorite of the evening. Robust and heavy (from being All Barley I was told) a touch too sweet for me. 70% of the flavor comes from the wood it's matured in and this one matures and finishes in 4 types of casks - Bourbon, Port, Sherry and Madeira - there's a lot going on in this bottle.

Lastly we had the Black Label 12.
For me, this was the runner up to the first bottle we tried (the Original green label).
Again triple-distilled, bourbon and sherry casks, award winning - delicious!
Tim called this the Mythbuster Whiskey:
".....don't have to spend tons of money to have a really good whiskey...this one does the trick....."

He called this bottle The Gem...neat with couple of cubes...relax and enjoy.

The Toast?

here's to the girl I kissed last
it wasn't slow
it wasn't fast
.................................
.................................
(and I will let you all find out or fill in however you like here)


there are good ships
there are wood ships
and there are ships that sail the sea
but the best ships are friendships
and may they always be

".....drink it whichever way you want, just with friends and with a toast....."

Thank you Tim Herlihy and the company you represent. We had a great, great evening. Hope to do this again.