For the last 168 years, the officers of the 69th Regiment kicked off their responsibilities as lead unit in New York’s St. Patrick’s Day Parade by raising a glass of Irish whiskey in a traditional toast. When they do it next year, it will be with an Irish whiskey named after them. The Fighting 69th Irish Whiskey made its official debut this month in New York and other selected East Coast markets in time to mark the unit’s 170th anniversary.
The concept for the whiskey dedicated to the 69th was the inspiration of retired Colonel James Tierney, a former officer in the unit and a Trustee of its non-profit Historical Trust. Having also served for ten years as the 69th Regimental Historian, the idea came to him during one of his many visits to Ireland.
“With our strong Irish heritage, members of the 69th are invited to Waterford, Ireland each year to participate in the annual Tricolour Celebration, which marks the creation in 1848 of the flag that would eventually become the Irish Republic’s National flag,” recalled Tierney. “It’s been my honor to attend the celebration frequently and a few years ago, while enjoying the festivities with a taste of local whiskey, it occurred to me that the Fighting 69th should have its own Irish whiskey I approached a few distilleries with the concept and while nearly all expressed some initial interest, nothing really became of it.”
However, a special visitor to the 69th Regiment Armory who happened to have a long history in the spirits industry changed all that. “A partner of The Espiritus Group, a spirits development and marketing company, was touring the armory and I mentioned the idea of a Fighting 69th Irish whiskey. He was immediately intrigued, and we set about to make it happen,” said Tierney.
“It made total sense. Some of the finest whiskies in the world come from Ireland and the category is currently on fire,” added The Espiritus Group CMO Scott Reid. “To be able to help create a great whiskey brand and have it associated with a military unit with the reputation and tradition of the 69th Infantry Regiment was an opportunity we simply couldn’t allow to pass by.”
Sourced from Ireland’s finest distilleries, The Fighting 69th Irish Whiskey is triple distilled in copper pot stills and cask-aged in once-used bourbon and sherry barrels on Ireland’s southern coast.
“I would describe the whiskey as being very much like the motto of the Fighting 69th Regiment: Gentle when stroked, fierce when provoked,” Reid said.
The 69th Infantry Regiment has a long and storied history. Seven of its members have received the Medal of Honor, an exceptionally large number of recipients for a National Guard Unit. Its wartime exploits have been memorialized in books and the 1940 movie “The Fighting 69th” starring James Cagney.
The Fighting 69th Irish Whiskey is being produced in conjunction with the 69th Infantry Regiment Historical Trust, which is a non-profit 501 (c) (3) entity. A portion of the sale of each bottle sold will benefit the trust and support its historic preservation mission as well as philanthropic activities on behalf of the regiment’s veterans and their families.
