Spirit of the country

By ANDREW MARSHALL and PAUL MARSHALL

Irish Whiskey. It is difficult to explain to the uninitiated the pleasures of this smooth amber fluid. James Joyce wrote of "the light music of whiskey falling into a glass - an agreeable interlude". An old Irish toast gets straight to the point: "Too much of anything is good for nothing. Too much whiskey is barely enough." Amen.

Like many others before, we are making the pilgrimage to the place where it all began.

Amid the green fields on Northern Ireland's County Antrim coast, near the world-famous Giant's Causeway, where the winds blow and the water is clean and pure, is a small town that is home to Old Bushmills - the oldest licensed whiskey distillery in the world. It will celebrate its 400th birthday in 2008 and behind this milestone is a tale of ingenuity, craftsmanship and a quest to perfect the art of distilling.

Inside the distillery this cool September day, our tour guide is a friendly woman named Dawn Blair. She walks and talks us through the whiskey-making process that takes malted barley, grinds it up into a mash with water and then distils it before putting it in casks to mature.

Whiskey drinkers worldwide can thank a band of Irish monks for their favourite tipple. In the sixth century they brought back from the Middle East the alembic (apparatus) used to distil perfumes, but soon adapted it to the creation of the still. By distilling the essence of barley they created a golden spirit, Aqua Vitae - the Water of Life, or in Gaelic, Uisce Beatha.

"Many people confuse Irish whiskey with Scotch," says Dawn inside the malt-house. While the Scots roast their barley over open peat fires (which gives Scotch its distinctive smoky taste) and distil it only twice, the Irish roast theirs in closed kilns and distil it three times.

She also points out that the Irish spell whiskey with an "e". No one quite knows why, but they're sticking with it, and they did invent it after all. Their version, like their accent, is gentler and more beguiling.

The heart of the whiskey-making process is the stillroom. Inside, it's around 25C and the atmosphere is thick with alcohol. As we arrive, "still man" Kenny Garvin is testing for quality among the traditional copper stills.

Whiskeys from Old Bushmills:

Original Bushmills Irish Whiskey: A delicate blend aged in oak casks. It has a fragrant maltiness with sweet, spicy and toasted woodnotes, a delicate flavour and a distinct smoothness with a slightly dry finish.

Black Bush Irish Whiskey: Made from Irish malt whiskey aged for several years in a special selection of Oloroso sherry casks with a small quantity of well-aged grain whiskey. It has a full-bodied aroma; full of character, with fruity, spicy, malty and nutty sweet sherry flavours all intermingling.

Bushmills 1608 Special Reserve 12 Years Old: This is a limited edition blending of Irish malt whiskey and grain whiskey aged for a minimum of 12 years. It has a rich strong malty character with fruity, spicy, woody and sweet nutty undertones derived from maturation in Oloroso sherry casks. A delightful smoothness and a velvety mouth feel.

Getting there:

Belfast/Dublin can be built into a Qantas/Air Lingus One World Ticket. Contact your travel agent for the latest offers. There are huge price fluctuations depending on flight availability and how far ahead you want to book, but expect to pay around $2800 for an economy class return trip.

Getting around:

Car hire: contact Murrays/Europcar at: Belfast International Airport, ph +44(0)2894 423444; Dublin International Airport, ph +44 (0)1 812 0410.

Old Bushmills Whiskey Distillery:

This is near the County Antrim coast about an hour's drive north from Belfast. For more information and guided tour details contact the tour centre on ph + 44(0) 282073 3218.

Where to stay:

The Bushmills Inn, 9 Dunluce Rd, Bushmills, County Antrim BT57 8QG, Northern Ireland. Ph +44(0)28 2073 2339, email mail@bushmillsinn.com. Further Information: Tourism Ireland, sixth floor, 18 Shortland St, Auckland, ph (09) 977 2255, fax (09) 977 2256, email galway@ireland.co.nz

Recommended reading:

Lonely Planet Ireland.


www.bushmills.com

www.whiskeytours.ie