Unlike other blends where several whiskeys from either other distilleries or the open market are combined together to reduce costs, the Jameson distilling tradition has always insisted upon producing every component of its whiskey "from grain to glass." Jameson is similar in its adherence to the single distillery principle to the single malt tradition, but Jameson combines malted barley with unmalted or "green" barley. The most famous component within Jameson is the legendary "Pure Pot Still" (the name describes it, a mixture of malted and unmalted barley distilled in a still pot) component unique to Irish whiskey distilling tradition.
The company was established in 1780 when John Jameson established the Bow Street Distillery in Dublin. (This is the location of the tour and visitors center today.) Originally one of the six main Dublin Whiskeys, Jameson it is now distilled in Cork, although vatting still takes place in Dublin. With annual sales of over 31 million bottles, Jameson is by far the best selling Irish whiskey in the world, as it has been internationally since the early 1800s when John Jameson along with his son (also named John) was producing over a million gallons annually. By law, Irish whiskey must be produced in Ireland and aged in wooden casks (Jameson uses sherry casks for additional flavor) for a period of no less than three years, although in practice it is usually three or four times that period. (Jameson is aged for 12 years and up.)
Jameson Irish whiskey is produced from a mixture of malted and unmalted or "green" Irish barley, all sourced from within a fifty mile radius around the distillery in Cork. The barley is dried in a closed kiln fired by clean-burning anthracite coal to preserve its flavor. Like most Irish whiskey, Jameson is triple distilled for optimum smoothness. The philosophy is balance, ensuring that no one flavor element overpowers another. The end result is a sweet-tasting whiskey. The tour showed us the techniques for building and use of the barrels and how it impacted the flavor of the end product. They even provided barrels to illustrate what the whiskey smells like along the process, and the honey-like smell at the end is remarkable.
Not surprisingly, this tour was dominated by young men - not many ladies, and not one that wasn't with a young man). This was valuable to me, however, when the guide asked for volunteers for the tasting at the end of the tour and insisted on 4 men and 4 women. There were around 30 people in our tour and only 6 were women, 2 of which didn't even raise their hands. Good stuff. This worked out well for D too, because even though the shot glasses were small, they contained a lot more whiskey than I was prepared to consume, which meant that D was going to be a part of the tasting too. We tasted an American whiskey (Jack Daniels), a Scottish whiskey (Johnnie Walker Black) and Jameson.
Our knowledgeable guide briefly explained the differences in the whiskeys before the tasting. For the budding aficionados like myself, here is a recap: The basic types of Scotch are malt and grain, which are combined to create blends. Many, though not all, Scotch whiskies use peat smoke to treat their malt, giving Scotch its distinctive smoky flavor and are distilled twice. While the market is dominated by blends, the most highly prized of Scotch whiskies are the single malts (Johnnie is a blended Scotch whiskey). American whiskey is distilled from a fermented mash of cereal grain. There are many different varieties (bourbon, rye, corn) but the main point made by our guide was that it was distilled only once. There was a remarkable taste difference between the 3 types. I appreciated how relatively smooth the Jameson was compared to the Jack (Jack is harsh!) but I did also like the smokey element of Johnnie. I was grateful for the education.
All tasters became certified tasters (as this lovely document proclaims) upon completion of the tasting and correct answering of which one we liked best (all proclaimed Jameson superior). All those not partaking in the tasting had their own drink choices of: Jameson straight, on the rocks, with Ginger Ale, with Coke, or with Cranberry juice. As we all finished off our drinks (I received a mixed drink as well as the tasting -oh boy!) it was fun to meet the others on our tour. There were several American exchange students, an Aussie, a few Scandinavians and Germans and a smattering of other nationalities. I had little difficulty finding willing volunteers to take the Jack and Johnnie off my hands (I tasted it, passed it to D and then passed it on to the students). Several had just come from the Guinness Brewery, so were already feeling friendly. So, we got a taste of the atmosphere before our arrival, since Guinness was next on the agenda.
It is harder to find than you would think - they own a HUGE complex - but thankfully signs like this and the ant-line of tourists with Guinness gift bags helped lead us safely to our destination.
We were wicked hungry (all that whiskey on an empty stomach, not so good) and unfortunately got there after their restaurants closed (talk about bad luck). So we enjoyed a coffee shop sandwich and took in the atmosphere. The Storehouse is laid out over seven floors surrounding a glass atrium taking the shape of a pint of Guinness. On the ground floor the massive exhibit introduces you to the four ingredients; water, barley, hops and yeast, all of which combine together to make a pint of Guinness.
I am not a fan of Guinness - I prefer dark, sweet beers and Guinness has a bitter, heavy flavor and feel that I have not enjoyed. My trip advisors informed me, however, that Guinness in Dublin tastes better than anywhere else, not just because of the atmosphere, but because it has to be really fresh to taste the best. Apparently, Dublin goes through A LOT of Guinness, so generally, the beer on tap is always fresh. And, I would expect the Guinness Gravity Bar (where one can indulge in a complementary pint of Guinness and enjoy the 360 degree views over Dublin) to serve fresh beer. I learned that the beer has to sit for close to a minute, to settle, before being consumed. In this time, it changes color from an almost white, to carmel, to the dark brown-black it is known for. I tried to capture the transformation in this pic.
D was good enough to procure our beers for us as I staked out a spot by the window (over the air conditioning vent - it was HOT!) overlooking the brewery. I tried my beer and agreed with my Guinness loving friends that it really was better here - but still not my style. (I hate to admit it, but I have become quite fond of Belgian beers. I feel like I am cheating on Bavarian beer by saying that. So silly...)
We made our way around the uber-crowded bar to enjoy the views. Since the weather was so clear, we could see for miles in every direction, that alone was worth visiting the bar. Gorgeous.
In order to allow a little rest for the weary, we left Guinness and headed back to the hotel for a quick rest before our Traditional Irish Music Pub Crawl. This pic is of the Temple Bar area, which is an area on the south bank of the River Liffey in central Dublin, Ireland. Unlike the areas surrounding it, Temple Bar has preserved its medieval street pattern, with many narrow cobbled streets. It is promoted as "Dublin's cultural quarter" and has a lively nightlife that is popular with tourists. This was where our pub crawl started.
We had 2 professional traditional Irish musicians take us to this pub, and play for us in an upper room that was reserved just for our group (no fighting over chairs - it was great!) They gave us time to all get a drink (Irish cider is lovely) and then proceeded to educate us on what is and isn't Irish music. Needless to say, they were incredibly entertaining and the music was first rate. We have some fun video of them playing and I even got sucked into buying a CD at the end (normally I am stronger than that, but I have no instrumental Irish music, and the Irish Rovers need company in my iPod.) I did discover, though, much to my chagrin, that the Chieftains, a group that my mom has enjoyed for years and I thought to be a silly group, are actually remarkable musicians and have done more to maintain traditional music here than just about anyone. I am now intrigued to listen to their music.
We finished up right by our hotel (sooooo nice) at another truly Irish bar - our guides quickly told us which ones were genuine, meaning ones you would actually catch Irish people at instead of just tourists - called Brannigan's. As we passed by this monument of sorts, our musicians informed us that Dubliners living north of the river Liffey have nicknames for such city art as this south of the river Liffey and visa versa (not surprising that they have a sense of humor). This was supposed to be called the Millennium Spire, in honor of the changing of the millennium, but since it didn't get finished until 2003, it is just called the Spire - or the "Stiffy by the Liffey" or the "Stiletto in the Ghetto." There is a statue of Molly Mallone south of the river and she is called the "Tart with the Cart." (Difficult to understand why when looking at the pic below...)
"Molly Malone" is a popular song, set in Dublin, which has become the unofficial anthem of the City. The song tells the tale of a beautiful fishmonger who plied her trade on the streets of Dublin, but who died young, of a fever. She is typically represented as a hawker by day and part-time prostitute by night. The song is in a familiar tragi-comic mode popular in the late 1800's. I don't know where I heard it but when our bus driver started singing it on our day trip out into Wicklow County, I could sing along with him. There is nothing "traditional" about this song, and the musicians guiding us from pub to pub definately thought very little of it, but I love it and it makes me smile just to think about. Here is a verse and chorus, and if you ask me when I return to the USA, I will gladly sing it for you:
In Dublin's fair city,
where the girls are so pretty,
I first set my eyes on sweet Molly Malone,
As she wheeled her wheel-barrow,
Through streets broad and narrow,
Crying, "Cockles and mussels, alive, alive, oh!"
"Alive, alive, oh,
Alive, alive, oh",
Crying "Cockles and mussels, alive, alive, oh".
1 comment:
how cool! sounds like such a great trip to Ireland!
btw -- I love the chieftains! I'm a huge fan of Irish music in general, but they're near the top of my list of favorites.
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