“It makes me very proud to be able to bring something uniquely Dublin back to the fabric of Dublin society.” -- Jack Teeling, founder of Teeling Whiskey.
If Dublin was the epicentre of distilling in Ireland during Irish whiskey’s golden era, then the Liberties area was the epicentre of distilling in Dublin. George Roe’s Thomas Street operation and William Jameson & Co’s Marrowbone Lane were at one stage the two biggest distilleries in the capital, with the John Power & Son’s John’s Lane Distillery not far behind. Between them, they occupied over 36 acres of the bustling area outside the old city walls.
By the 1920s, the first two had disappeared, with Power’s bowing out and moving to Cork in the 1970s. For around 40 years, not a drop of whiskey was distilled near the banks of the River Liffey, until Stephen and Jack Teeling woke the Spirit of Dublin on Newmarket Square.
The sons of John Teeling, founder of the Cooley Distillery, they already had valuable experience of the industry. In fact, the family name is embedded in Dublin distilling since 1782, when Walter Teeling set up a craft distillery on Marrowbone Lane.
Their background meant they were able to secure some superb mature whiskey stock to bottle and brand until their own Dublin spirit has rested sufficiently in oak casks.
Former Kilbeggan distiller, Alex Chasko, is responsible for fashioning Teeling whiskey from the three copper pot stills at the impressive new distillery. The goal is to revive “the traditional style of Dublin whiskey distillation”. They certainly have the background to do it.
The new facility is open for tours, and if you’re lucky, you might get to see some whiskey making in progress.
