The Art and Rarity of Single Estate Whiskey
In the refined world of whiskey, few terms exude luxury and authenticity quite like “Single Estate.” For discerning whiskey lovers, it represents the pinnacle of provenance—a liquid from a single origin, crafted with precision and care at every production stage. Unlike other whiskeys, where ingredients may come from multiple sources, a single estate whiskey is […]
Harvest 2024 is almost ready
After a year of unpredictable weather, we are glad to be getting close to harvest time. Ned Morrisey will be harvesting spring barley from these fields over the next few days (weather permitting!) and we cannot wait to get it cut and into store. As you can see, we’ve been growing a mix of Amity […]
Planting Curraghmore Whiskey Barley
Great weather finally arrives and we can plant our barley On Saturday 11th May 2024, we finally planted barley in Ashmore’s field, which will be cultivated to produce Curraghmore Whiskey through distillation. Ashmore’s field is 12 acres, and the soil type is slightly heavy clay. Here you see Ned Morrissey, our Head of Tillage, […]
Creating Casks from Curraghmore Oak
An exciting project is underway at Curraghmore – we are making whiskey casks from oak grown here at Curraghmore Estate. These naturally felled oaks have been part of the Curraghmore Estate story for many years, so we thought it was fitting, and sustainable, to use these oaks to create casks in which we will age […]
Whiskey casks – what you need to know
Whiskey cannot be officially classed as ‘whiskey’ until is it ‘laid down’, or stored, in a cask for at least 3 years. So what is a cask? A cask is a wooden barrel that is used to store whiskey as it matures. Casks are typically made of oak. They vary in size, from 50 litres […]
The 2023 Grain Harvest and the Factors That Shape It
Curraghmore Estate has been at the forefront of agricultural innovation and dedication since 1167. Our farmyard was the first industrially designed agricultural complex in Europe built in 1840 focusing on grain production and milling. This year, despite the challenges posed by unpredictable weather patterns, our team led by Ned & Eamon Morrissey have made significant […]
Is this oak tree suitable to make a whiskey cask?
Here Richard, Curraghmore Whiskey MD, meets with Paddy Purser, Forest Consultant, to discuss the possibilities of using a 200-year oak tree that fell in a recent storm, as a potential cask for maturing whiskey. What makes a tree suitable for cooperage? Paddy chats about 2 key elements: Straight Fissures Absence of Knots We would love […]
How moisture and protein levels in barley affect distillation
When malting barley is harvested, the moisture content in each grain will be around 15%, sometimes higher, depending on the conditions. The priority then is to dry the barley, to get the moisture level in the grain down to below 14%. Why is this important? Well, if you store barley with higher moisture content, you […]
How malting works
The Malting Process Barley malt is the cornerstone of Whiskey production. However, newly harvested barley grains can’t be processed into Whiskey straight away – The starch contained within the barley grain must first be converted into sugar before the yeast can start fermentation; this breaking down of starch into sugar is called ‘Malting’. Malting consists of 3 main steps: Steeping the Barley Germinating the Barley Kilning th
What does ‘Cask Strength’ mean?
Cask strength is a term used by whiskey producers to describe a whiskey that has not been substantially diluted after its storage in a cask for maturation. The level of alcohol-by-volume strength for a cask-strength whiskey is typically in the range of 52 – 66% ABV. So ‘Cask Strength’ has become a byword for high […]
