Midleton Very Rare 1996 Edition Irish Single Malt Whiskey (1996) 70cl The Midleton Very Rare range has been going since 1984 and its annual releases have become a must-have collector’s...
Midleton Very Rare 1996 Edition Irish Single Malt Whiskey (1996) 70cl
The Midleton Very Rare range has been going since 1984 and its annual releases have become a must-have collector’s item for Irish whiskey lovers. The range embodies the finest blending of single pot still whiskey from the Midleton storehouse, artfully executed by the Master Distiller. In the case of this 1996 vintage we have an age range of 12-25 year old whiskeys with Barry Crockett at the helm.
The 1996 release of Midleton's yearly Very Rare whiskey. Very few whiskeys are deemed worthy of carrying the Midleton name, and this annual release is the only regular expression that does.
TASTING NOTES
Nose: Rich introduction of warming spices and zesty fruits with notes of cinnamon, nutmeg, clove and orange peel. Additional fruits appear with sweet pear and juicy red apples along with notes of malted barley, salted caramel and honeycomb. The oak builds in intensity adding layers of vanilla and freshly brewed coffee aromas, combining effortlessly with the fruits and spices to create a complex medley of flavours.
Palate: Opens with notes of baked orchard fruits and delicate hints of orange zest and cinnamon, before the spices eventually build and evolve adding touches of pink peppercorns and cardamom. The soft tannins from the oak work in harmony with the spices and sweet fruits, creating a balanced whiskey further enriched by notes of floral honey and vanilla.
Finish: Balanced finish, with the spices the first to slowly fade leaving the fruits and oak hold firm until the very end.
About Midleton
From its beginnings on the banks of the crystalline Dungourney River, Midleton Distillery’s links with the land run deep and long.
Of course whiskey is also the lifeblood of a people and their aspirations. And this town has always been a pioneering community, from the moment the Murphy family started to distil here in 1825.
Through times of great hardship, the roots of Irish whiskey production remained strong in East Cork, and the industry’s resurgence in the 1980’s saw the launch of the Midleton Very Rare range of vintages to critical acclaim.
Standing the test of time, the distillery was once again been brought back to life in 2020 through the Silent Distillery Collection. This incredibly rare set of releases captures the pioneering spirit of Old Midleton Distillery; a distillation from an extraordinary decade of experimentation and innovation.
This world class state of the art distillery creates five brands of Irish whiskey of which Midleton Very Rare is the pinnacle. And at the heart of the new distillery is a fitting tribute to its creator – the Barry Crockett Still House.
The Cork of today still singing in perfect harmony with the distillery. It is part of this place and part of a people who still transform their bounty, into their legacy.
Midleton Very Rare:
In the early 1900’s Irish whiskey was a bountiful industry, but this once flourishing trade sailed into a perfect storm of trials and tribulations. From the Irish War of Independence to a crippling era of prohibition in the US, Irish whiskey was brought crashing down to its knees.
This could have marked the end of the story for our nation’s finest export, but perseverance and craftsmanship won out, fostering a new aeon in Irish whiskey production. This was led by the most outstanding of all Irish whiskeys – Midleton Very Rare.
In 1984 Barry Crockett saw an opportunity to bring together the very best of the magic of Midleton Distillery to create a whiskey like no other. The finest raw materials, the most advanced techniques, a dedicated team of craftspeople – an orchestra in perfect harmony.
Rarely has a whiskey existed with the weight of three master distillers behind it – birthing, bonding and building it over time. This masterful trilogy of Barry Crockett, Brian Nation and most recently Kevin O’Gorman, has ensured a consistency and level of quality across the Midleton Very Rare vintages that is quite simply unsurpassed. Discover the subtle nuances that each of these men has brought to the Midleton range since its beginning in 1984.
Rarely has a whiskey existed with weight of three master disillers behind it – birthing, bonding and building it over time. This masterful trilogy of Barry Crockett, Brian Nation and most recently Kevin O’Gorman, has ensured a consistency and level of quality across the Midleton Very Rare vintages that is quite simply unsurpassed.
Discover the subtle nuances that each of these men has brought to the Midleton range since its beginning in 1984.
Under the watchful eye of his father, Max Crockett, himself a master distiller, Barry became captivated by the atmosphere of the distillery, the noise, the smells and the excitement. The more he learned, the more his exceptional nose and palate guided the distillery on its journey to creating the finest whiskey in the world. In 1981 Barry became Master Distiller of the Midleton Distillery and three years later he created Midleton Very Rare.
For Barry, the title of Master Distiller has always been a matter of constant work, careful selection, adherence to quality and using the very best raw materials available. His first memory of working in the distillery was in August 1965, and indeed his very first job was to check the samples of grain and barley provided by the local farmers. Testing the moisture level and what was then known as the bushel weight, and then on the basis of that, one assessed whether or not the grain was suitable.
A stickler for the best from day one, rising in the ranks of Midleton Distillery didn’t take long for this man of vision and great spirit. His legacy lives on in the work done by each and every member of the team on a daily basis.
Barry Crockett is Midleton Very Rare distilled. He is its spirit. Reserved yet generous, precise but big hearted, he weighs up each word carefully just as you weigh the whiskey on your tongue and when he speaks, measured, slow, accurate, you listen.
Some may say Kevin O’Gorman has always been poised to take on one of the most coveted positions in world whiskey. He is a master craftsman in every sense of the term, having started his career in Midleton in 1998, working as a distiller under the tutelage of Master Distiller Emeritus Barry Crockett. He then heeded the call of the magic of maturation where he honed his skills under then Master of Maturation Brendan Monks before assuming the role of Master of Maturation on Brendan’s retirement in 2007.
Kevin spearheaded the continuous innovation in maturation that has made Midleton famous, dedicating much of his time travelling the globe to source only the highest quality casks from world renowned cooperages. He truly understands every intricacy of the whiskey production process, from grain to glass.
As part of his role as Master Distiller, he will be responsible for protecting the rich heritage of the world’s most famous Irish whiskeys, ensuring the quality of all new pot and grain distillates produced at Midleton while driving future innovation.
Under his leadership, we enter a compelling new phase in the history of Midleton Very Rare.
Driven very much by his own vision of the future, Brian always acknowledged the inspiration he drew from the past. It was this mixture of forward thinking and traditional craft that helped the award-winning Master Distiller to fulfil his dream of creating special and unique whiskey across the Midleton Very Rare portfolio for seven successful years.
40% ABV
70cl
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