Irish Whiskey Distillation

Distillation
The distilling process is where the alcohol which has a lower boiling point than water is separated from the fermented liquid or wash from the washback. Traditionally Irish Pot still whiskey is distilled three times in copper stills to ensure a smooth and delicate spirit

Copper Pot Stills
Traditional Copper Pot Stills
  • 1. The wash is heated in the first still (Wash still) and condensed into low wines
  • 2. This then goes to the second still (Low wines and Feint still) where more impurities are removed and feints are collected.
  • 3. The feints then go to a third still (Spirit still) where a further refining of the spirit takes place The result is the production of a colourless spirit which has a high alcohol content.
It is this third distillation that gives "Irish" its different taste which is purer and lighter than Scotch Whisky which is distilled twice. At the Midleton distillery in Co. Cork depending on the desired outcome the spirit may have been distilled as many as 5 times. The distilled spirit at this stage still has a long journey ahead of it before it can be truly called whiskey.
Glossary
Ingredients Malting Mashing Distillation Maturation Blending
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