🥃 Whisky Auctioneer

Not very peaty on the nose but definitely on the palate

honey, vanilla, citrus, cooked fruits, bacon, interesting

After the Teeling Single Pot Still, which in October 2018 was the first whiskey distilled in Dublin to herald the return of the capital to the whiskey map in decades, the Blackpitts is now Teeling's second "home grown", which is not made from Papa's old stocks of Cooley- Times acquired, but was burned in the Dublin Liberties. A peated single malt from Dublin would have made a bet a few years ago ... And yes, he can do something! With its rather subtle smoke intensity - with a view over to Scotland - it goes more in the direction of the peated Highlands than on THE island (Islay), but its smoke suits him very well, no question.

Teeling Whiskey, has today announced the launch of their first peated Irish single malt whiskey expression. Teeling Blackpitts (46% ABV) has been triple distilled and matured in a combination of ex-Bourbon and ex-Sauternes white wine casks. Teeling Blackpitts, takes its name from the old ancient Blackpitts area behind the distillery, in the old Liberties area of Dublin City. Blackpitts was traditionally home to some of the largest barley malting houses in Ireland. By using smoke from peat to dry the barley during the malting process, the resulting peated malt produces a distinctive smoky taste profile, which is the signature of a Peated Single Malt. Commenting on the news, Jack Teeling, Founder and Managing Director of Teeling Whiskey, said: “When we re-established Teeling Whiskey in 2012 our goal was to be the leader in driving the choice and expressions of Irish whiskey as well as to revive distilling in the city of Dublin. With our new Blackpitts Peated Single Malt we manage to achieve both.” He went onto say: “The combination of the age-old malting process of using smoke from peat to dry the malted barley combined with the triple distillation in our Dublin distillery, produces a very unique Teeling Whiskey. While this style of whiskey is not for everyone, the whiskey drinkers who enjoy this unique smoky character really do seek it out and it is only right that there is a Teeling, Dublin and Irish whiskey available to cater for this interest. Rooted in history but encapsulating a true modern approach, our new Blackpitts is truly unconventional Irish whiskey at its finest.” Teeling Blackpitts, will be available later this month directly from the distillery and specialist retailers, for a RRP of €60.00 in Ireland.

2021 Rating

1626) Teeling, Blackpitts, Peated, Bourbon and Sauternes Cask Maturation (2020)

Five Times is a Charm I guess it was only a matter of time before the Irish Teeling distillery also released a peaty whiskey. I confess, I wasn't waiting on it. On the other hand I was a bit curious. This whiskey does have the dubious honor of me writing the tasting notes only after the 5th tasting session! That actually says a lot, doesn't it? Thanks to the triple distillation this is a lot more fruity than you would expect. Technical details: the peat comes from the Scottish Lowlands and the whiskey is finished on the Sauternes wine casks! Let's get to it. Poached pears, grilled pineapple, Jelly Bean candy, cigar tobacco and the qshes of yesterday's barbecue. That is the nose of this at first rather strange Irish whiskey. I can't help but make the – probably completely unwarranted – comparison with Connemara. But at last I am able to appreciate it. The body is rather light. Again those pears come up joined by apples and pineapple , followed by something medicinal that I find hard to appreciate, a bitterness as if from a grape pith and smoke that keeps getting bigger. Quite a bit of sugar. Just plain sugar. Not easy, but interesting. The medium long finish some woodsmoke and a final salute of white fruit. The first 2 times I tried this, I was not convinced. Completely not. The 3rd and 4th time I thought it was okay-ish, but the fifth time ... that's when it hit me. This is quite beautiful in its genre. Kudos to Alex Chasko. But fair is fair, I wouldn't need a whole bottle of this. It would take me too long to finish it.

Proper whiskey at a young age that regresses a little on the finish.

Reasonable for a young NAS whiskey. The balance could be better as it’s a bit woody and peat-centric, but the sweet peat is promising.

Nose-81; Taste-81; Finish-82.

Not a very complex whiskey, but an interesting one. The nose and palate are largely the same. Long, pleasant finish. Reminds me very strongly of an older bottling of the Connemara NAS

Delicious, "drinkable", very smoky and light whiskey at the same time.

Nose: fresh and pleasant, vanilla, toffee, honey, sand cake, citruses, orchard fruits, green apple, lemons, oranges, candied orange peel, burnt sugar, red fruits, salted nuts, delicate light smoke. Taste: peat smoke, delicate and pleasant, sweet, vanilla, honey, citrus, spices, white pepper, red fruit, oak tartness. Very consistent with the nose, although peat is more noticeable. Finish: medium long, citrus, smoky, vanilla, honey, slightly warming, green apple.

You could briefly describe this whiskey as a small barbecue on the beach with yellow fruits.

Mineral, pebbles, citrus, dried orange peel, fruity, honey, dried aromas, rhubarb. A little burning, warming, tingling, good start, good intensity, one-dimensional. Starts well, then subsides a little.

Nice Teeling, nothing spectacular. The smoke is subtle.

Young, tasty Teeling. Little complex but harmonious in what it offers. For me it was good enough and tasty to drink again and again. Only the smoke could be a bit more intense throughout, as it degraded more and more as the bottle content decreased.

15-10-2021

Unfortunately, it's not really my thing. It doesn't really harmonize with each other.

A surprisingly nice effort for a young release and a first crack at a style. I was expecting something more like Connemara and a whiskey more like a Scotch, but this really drank more like an Irish. It’s really nice to see a triple distilled whiskey that’s been peated. I’m looking forward to more in this vein.

Yellow gold in colour, light oil movement in the glass, slow and thick tears and a nice adhesive edge.

Triple distilled, aged in Bourbon and Sauternes casks. The barley is peated to 55 ppm with Scottish Lowland peat. Two Bourbon casks go in to one Sauternes cask. Around 4 - 4.5 years old. NOSE: Medium heavy smokiness mixed with winey, fruity sweetness. Grilled mango and pineapple. Nice. (85p). TASTE: The arrival is initially smokey, then very fruity. Then the peat returns forcefully on the mid palate. Liqorice, sweet fruits. Grilled pineapple was suggested and yes, there it is. A little rough. (83p). FINISH: Soot,white and black pepper, fruity sweetness. (83p). OVERALL: Young, peaty and sweet and a little rough on the edges. Total score 83 (84) points.

2021-06-17

An Irish take on smoky whiskey. The smoke initially rises on both the nose and palate, accompanied by a well-balanced mix of sweet vanilla, pineapple, barley sugar and caramel. The Sauternes cask provides a welcome sweetness that balances the peat smoke, which feels considerably more integrated here. The palate develops with citrus, smoky pineapple and the sweet, syrupy, oily character of Irish whiskey beneath the peat. As the whiskey opens up, the smoke gradually recedes and more of the cask influence begins to emerge, adding greater complexity and balance. There is plenty of flavour and an appealing interplay between sweet Irish whiskey, tropical fruit and assertive peat. The smoke complements rather than overwhelms the underlying spirit and cask character. I prefer this to the Cask Strength expression, which I find slightly harsh and less integrated. The standard 46% bottling may have less sheer power, but its superior balance allows the fruit, sweetness, spirit and peat to work together more successfully.