Bushmills Irish Whiskey Rolls Out American Oak Cask Finish

Bushmills Irish Whiskey recently began rolling out its newest creation, the American Oak Cask Finish. A statement from the brand said Bushmills master blender, Helen Mulholland, worked with hand-selected barrels from around the world to impart new flavors for this offering.

This whiskey is part of a new cask series Bushmills created. The first offering in it, the Caribbean Rum Cask Finish, is finished in hand-selected oak Caribbean Rum casks, then blended with Bushmills triple-distilled Irish grain whiskey to create tropical fruit and dry spice flavors.

The newest release, out now, the American Oak Cask Finish is finished in double charred American Oak barrels for those wood and vanilla flavors and extra smoothness. It’s then blended with Bushmills triple-distilled grain whiskey. The brand said the secret of the flavors here lies in the casks. Bushmills’ long-time partnership with the barrel makers at Kelvin Cooperage, in Louisville, Kentucky, was the inspiration for this newest cask finish.

Double charring is the process applied on request to small quantities of barrels, which are then shipped by Kelvin Cooperage to The Old Bushmills Distillery. At Bushmills, aging in these double charred casks results in what’s described as a deeper interaction between the whiskey and the fresh wood to deliver the flavor experience achieved in this cask finish expression.

Master Blender Mulholland said in a prepared statement the Original Cask Finish series “adds an extra dimension to our acclaimed Bushmills Original. The series offers an accessible introduction into the world of Bushmills by finishing our signature single malt in unique barrels for new flavor experiences.”

The Bushmills American Oak Cask Finish is bottled at 80 proof and is priced at €30 or about $36 USD for a 700ml bottle. Distiller’s tasting notes on the American Oak show the golden amber juice to have a nose of fresh honey and biscuit with toasted oak aromas. The taste has sweet notes of crème brûlée, toffee apple and vanilla.