Redbreast Dream Cask Ruby Port Cask Edition 28 Year

This was the peak of a recent tasting of the Redbreast line, the name for a specific blend of barrels of its distillate. I included that extended description because I found it fascinating that Redbreast, the Spot line, Powers, and the malt part of Jameson all come from the same stills distilling the same mash. What distinguishes them and the other brands in the collection is the three distinct cuts that are used to produce what is called light, medium, or heavy spirit. Multiply these three spirits by all the different kinds of barrels in its storage and you have a broad range to create unique flavor profiles for each brand. Redbreast is a mix of light and heavy barrels, which in this release were aged in bourbon, sherry, and port casks. Those casks were aged for a minimum of 28 years and then married in a Sandeman port pipe. The outcome is a spirit that lives up to its fantastic reputation. There's custard and redcurrant on the nose. A sip immediately offers abundant peaches and plums, followed by a pleasant amount of oak spice that gradually fades through a long finish. The stone fruit flavors are excellent, similar to what I discovered in the similarly aged Teeling Revival series, indicating this is a trait of well-aged Irish whiskey. It's a very different drink from the standard Redbreast line, which I find a little plain despite their undeniable deliciousness. Naturally, it's much more expensive and difficult to find, but it's definitely worth trying if you have the opportunity and I'll be watching for future releases in this series.

Incredible spirit where classic Irish tropical notes meet berries, citrus, coffee, raisins, figs, prunes, chocolate, and pot still spices. It's like the 27-year version amplified significantly. Nose: Raisins, Blackberries, Papayas, Guava, Figs, Toffee, Dark Chocolate, Mangoes, Pineapples, Green Apples, Passion Fruit, Raspberries, Honey, Bananas, Coconuts, Sunflowers, Mocha, Grapefruits Palate: Raisins, Dark Chocolate, Prunes, Dates, Morello Cherries, Raspberries, Espresso, Mocha, Hazelnuts, Walnuts, Cinnamon, Nutmeg, Chili Peppers, Cloves, Licorice, Blood Oranges, Christmas Cakes Finish: Grapefruit, Raisins, Honey, Peaches, Piña Colada, Blood Oranges, Blackberries, Cherries, Toffee, Prunes, Figs, Dark Chocolate, Licorice, Espresso, Passion Fruit, Mangoes