Jameson Distillery Midleton

One of the most fun parts of our trip to Ireland (and London) was stopping by the Jameson Distillery in Midleton, Ireland.  I've been blogging about food for years and whenever we travel I make sure we hit up the best food and drink locations in every city and town. This location is such a cool place because of it's history.  Last time we were here, I didn't do the tour because I had two tiny kiddos with me, this time I knew I wanted to include it on our adventure. 

Just for some history; Originally the Murphys invested a considerable sum in establishing a large distilling operation at the site, which was to become known as James Murphy and Company.  Now Jameson Distillery.

I was shocked to see just how big of a facility it was, and how much it's grown even recently.  It's one of the most state of the art facilities, the old structures are now mostly just for tours. 

Tools like this are scattered about to educate about the whiskey making process.

Originally a large undershot timber water wheel was installed to help power the distillery (which was replaced in 1852, by an iron water wheel which survives on-site to this day- see the image below. In addition, a mammoth 31,618 gallon pot still was constructed at the distillery which remains the largest ever built.

Midleton is one of the most modern distilleries in the world and has its production areas linked via fibre-optic networks.^[2] The distillery boasts three 75,000 litre pot stills (the largest currently in operation worldwide),^[3] and three column stills, which are used in combination to produce different types of whiskey. With a total production capacity of 64 million litres per annum, the distillery is the largest in Ireland. The distillery also hosts a micro distillery with smaller pot stills, which have the capacity to produce about 50,000 L of alcohol per annum

The pot still was so large, that it needed to be assembled on-site with the distillery built around it.

The ambition of the Murphys (and the effect of the 1823 excise reforms) is underlined by the fact that just two years earlier, the largest pot still in Ireland had a capacity of just 750 gallons. In 1827, Murphy's distillery is reported to have produced over 188,000 proof GALLONS of spirit.

Now the distillery is also home to a microbrewery for boutique products such as small batch gin and 

Cooper's tools.

After our tour we were invited to the tasting room. 

We tried a variety of whiskey including Jameson Whiskey, Scottish whisky, and American whiskey to become a "Qualified Irish Whiskey Taster".

Each tour includes a complementary drink.

Husband went neat and I went for mixed.