Glendalough Distillery recently announced the launch of a 7-year-old Irish single malt aged in very rare Japanese Mizunara casks sourced from the island of Hokkaido, Japan.
A search for the most flavorful oak in the world took them from Wicklow, Ireland to the volcanic north of Japan. This is where they found Mizunara, the most sought-after oak in the whiskey world. As the first Irish whiskey brand to use Mizunara, Glendalough had very much ventured into the unknown.
Mizunara’s rarity makes sourcing a great undertaking, but Glendalough was ready for the challenge of being the first Irish whiskey to utilize this oak. The trunks of these trees are prone to growing twisted, and they must grow to be twice the age of most oak trees before they can be felled. It then takes three years to dry, and even then, is difficult to cooper due to its porousness. However, therein lies its saving grace: whiskey can seep deeper into the wood, resulting in an alluring, exotic flavor.
“Every whiskey has a story, this one has an epic adventure, worthy of being told over a glass. This whiskey came from a relentless search for the best oak on earth,” said Gary McLoughlin, Founder & Marketing Director of Glendalough Distillery. “By ‘best’ I suppose we mean most flavorful. What started in the wooded mountains around our distillery eventually led us to the snowy north of Japan, where we somehow managed to get our hands on Mizunara. As the first Irish distillery ever to use this almost mythical species of oak we had really ventured into the unknown.”
On each bottle, you will see a little red thread – the Japanese call it the “red thread of fate.” This represents a connection between Wicklow and Hokkaido and the fateful union of Irish malt and Japan’s flavorful oak.
Glendalough 7-Year-Old Single Malt Mizunara Finish is available now for $99.99.
