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Midleton Meets Málaga

The 5th installment in the famed Redbreast Iberian Series sees Master Blender David McCabe travel to the sun-drenched hills of Málaga, Spain, to source Moscatel wine casks for finishing Redbreast’s signature Single Pot Still Irish Whiskey. Spanish Moscatel is celebrated for its floral aromas and notes of pineapple, peach, and honey — characteristics that weave beautifully into Redbreast’s rich pot still character.

The Moscatel wine is aged in American Oak for 24 months before the casks are emptied and transferred to Midleton Distillery, where Redbreast’s Single Pot Still Irish Whiskey has been maturing in these casks since June 2024.

About the Iberian Series

Redbreast’s Iberian Series celebrates Gilbey’s storied history of importing fortified wines and sherry from the Iberian Peninsula since the late 1800s. Master Blender David McCabe has traveled from the bodegas of Spain to the quintas of Portugal to explore and expand the sherried flavors that define Redbreast — combining Ireland’s traditional Single Pot Still process with the tastes and aromas of the Mediterranean.

Tasting Notes

• Nose: A fresh and floral balance of zesty fruits with dustings of nutmeg and rich vanilla oak
• Taste: Vibrant fruits combined with textured layers of toffee and honeycomb, subtle undertones of dried herbs, with consistent oak presence throughout
• Finish: Pot still spices and wine-seasoned oak lingering until the very end

Product Details

• Producer: Redbreast (Midleton Distillery)
• Region: County Cork, Ireland
• Style: Single Pot Still Irish Whiskey
• Cask Finish: Moscatel wine casks from Málaga, Spain
• Series: Iberian Series (5th Edition)
• Format: 750ml

Producer Description 

To create The Balvenie PortWood, rare 21 year old Balvenie which has been matured in traditional oak casks is transferred to a port cask, or pipe, which has held fine port wines. Here it is sampled every month to ensure that just the right amount of character is imparted by the port casks, enhancing and developing the single malt, whilst preserving its original characteristics. 

Producer Description 

Craigellachie 17 year old shows an evolution of the distillery style, the tropical fruit flavours are developing more exotic characters and there is an underlying sweetness as some cask development begins to show. This is a really special whisky and fun to explore, thinking about where the different flavours are coming from.

Tasting Notes by Advocacy Host Craig: Craigellachie is often referred to as 'The Bad Boy of Speyside,’ and after tasting the 17 it’s not hard to see why. Thanks to the use of traditional worm tub condensers, they produce a heavier and ‘meatier’ style of whisky.
Starting with a combination of sweet vanilla and caramelized apple, the 17 explodes with flavour when a drop of water is added, bursting forth with pineapple, citrus and lightly charred oak. It has a long finish that doesn't overstay its welcome.

Craigellachie was built in 1891 by the experienced whisky team of Peter Mackie and Alexander Edward. They needed a Single Malt as an ingredient for White Horse Blended Scotch, so the distillery was designed to produce a very specific distillery style which the team replicate to this day.

Craigellachie features some very specific production techniques: barley from an oil fired kiln giving more weight, short stills and worm tub condensers to minimise copper contact. The team do 21 mashes per week, have 8 wash backs and 4 copper pot stills.
People always talk about 'sulphur' flavours, which can be distracting. Craigellachie has a roasted brimstone character alongside a meaty quality. Way back in the 1890s Alfred Barnard described ""the chief characteristic of the Craigellachie brand is the pineapple flavour it develops with age"". This tropical fruit style is what makes the brimstone and meat flavours work, achieving a balance that gets beautifully complex in older age statements.

Producer Description 

100% malted rye. Full rye body. The roughness of most ryes is here tamed by the small cognac potstill. Fabulous.