IWSA MICIL DISTILLERY CASK

The Irish Whiskey Society America is excited to announce its second Irish Whiskey cask acquisition. From the Micil Distillery in Salthill Village, Galway, the IWSA cask is extremely unique. The combination of mash bill and wood type will yield an Irish Whiskey with a flavor profile not yet experienced in the market. We announced our new cask during an unveiling virtual event held July 14, 2023 which can be viewed on our website or YouTube channel.

The IWSA cask is made from Chestnut by the Toneleria del sur coopers in Cordoba Spain under the Casknolia trademark. The Chestnut quarter cask is 50 liters, smaller than the traditional 200 litre American Oak casks used for Bourbon. The cask is "virgin" having never been used before the fill date on July 7, 2022.

The distilled mash bill that went into the cask is a pot still whiskey. Due to technical file limitations, it cannot be called a single pot still due to other grains exceeding 5% of the total mash bill. The recipe contains 40% peated malted barley, 35% "green" or unmalted barley, 12% oats, 5% rye and 8% wheat. Labelled as Heritage Pot Still, this name describes the complex multi grain components that represent the traditional way whiskey was made more than a century ago in Galway. This is especially true of the peated malt component which was common in the Connemara region. The peat used by Micil is actually their own Irish "turf" which will bring another unique quality to the finished product. We should expect the bottled whiskey to have a wonderful nose, beautiful texture and weight, creamy mouthfeel, and tantalizing spice.

The IWSA cask is part of the Siolta Mhicil program consisting of only 240 50 litre casks in total. Options included 3 distinct mash bill recipes and 5 potential cask types. The IWSA Heritage Pot Still in Virgin Chestnut cask must age for 4 years as part of the program. The smaller cask size (traditional in the Galway region) creates more contact with the wood allowing the complex mash recipe a shorter maturation period to be ready for consumption. Aging exclusively in the virgin chestnut will also provide a heavy cask influence in a shorter period.

The Micil Distillery is currently located in the Salthill Village of Galway, a couple miles outside of the city center. Opened in 2016, it was the first legal distillery in Galway in over a century. First producing Poitin and Gin, Micil laid down their first Irish Whiskey in early 2021. Micil is one of the smallest distilleries in Ireland with capacity of only 200 liters per week. They produce a range of products under their multi licenses: Poitin, Whiskey, Irish Cream, and Gin. Plans are underway to construct a new, larger distillery in An Spideal, about 10 miles southwest along the coast, with planned 2025 opening. 

The distillery entrance in Salthill is located in the back of the Oslo Bar, giving Micil an almost "speakeasy" coolness. Two different tours are offered where visitors can learn about the history of the Micil family, tradition of Poitin and Whiskey making, and sample the various products in their barroom. 

IWSA members are encouraged to visit the Micil Distillery in the Salthill location. The IWSA cask is not onsite but rather aging in a separate maturation warehouse in Galway. IWSA members should expect the whiskey to be bottled during the 2nd half of 2026 with delivery by Christmas.