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West Cork whiskey set to take on the world

April 22nd, 2015 7:15 AM

By Southern Star Team

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West Cork's crown in whiskey making is set to be restored with the recent launch of a new Hyde single malt Irish whiskey that is matured in Skibbereen.

By Kieran O’Mahony

Conor and Alan Hyde are the brothers behind Hibernia Distillers Ltd, who produce the whiskey and it has already been launched in eleven countries around the world.

Hyde is described as a ‘presidential quality’ whiskey crafted in small batches to celebrate the inaugural appointment of Ireland’s very first president Douglas Hyde in 1938. This rare Irish whiskey is rekindling a West Cork tradition in that it is the first ten-year-old, non-chill filtered sherry cask-finished Irish whiskey aged in Skibbereen in over a century.

‘We’ve just shipped to France this morning and we have sold it to the UK, the Netherlands, South Africa, Germany and we’ve also signed an agreement with Canada, so it’s been an exciting time for us and we’re taking on two staff members straight away to help with administration,’ said Conor Hyde speaking to The Southern Star last week.

‘It’s already on sale in bars in Dublin and we received a glowing review from the popular whiskey website, Irishwhiskey.com which gave it the same taste rating as the Red Breast 12-year-old whiskey from Irish Distillers in Midleton.’

With both brothers coming from a food industry background in food selling and marketing, they are already planning to launch Hyde No2 in September which will be a 10-year-old rum cask-finished version.

As demand for Irish Whiskey in the American market continues to grow, Hibernia Distillers are perfectly placed to tap into the market.

‘Hyde brings to the American market a taste of a very special, rare Irish Whiskey that is made on a small scale, with local Irish ingredients and pure West Cork spring water. The spirit of Irish independence is encapsulated in every bottle of Hyde allowing us to create a truly outstanding whiskey that we know will be enjoyed by whiskey sipping connoisseurs everywhere,’ said Alan Hyde.

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