Welcome Ladies & Gents to another review. Another Irish Whiskey review. I think this type of whiskey is very underrated. People sometimes don't even recognize it for what it is. It is not just "whisky made in Ireland" it is far more than that.

Irish whiskey is the only home for single pot still whiskey which combines malted barley with unmalted barley and that gives a certain spice to the whisky what I like to call "pot still spice". It is also triple distilled and has a wonderful mouthfeel due to that. I think Irish Whiskey should not be looked over, it is great.

Today we are taking a look at the most sold whiskey in Ireland. Powers Gold Label. It is a blended whiskey that consist of 70% single pot still whiskey and 30% grain whiskey both distilled at the Middleton distillery. It is aged in ex-bourbon casks and it is non-chill filtered and bottled at a nice 43.2% abv. And what blows me away is the price! It is ranging anywhere from 20 euros to 25 euros. Great value!

About POWERS

"The Power family set the tone early: do what's right for your people, your barley farmers, and your customers. They led with their principles, and it guided them through the centuries. We like to think that when there's an easy way out, we go the other way. Our proud Powers story is one built on finding who we are and proudly sticking with it. We know you'll be able to relate."

The brand was founded in 1791 by James Power who, at the time, was an innkeeper. Before founding the distillery he did a little distilling on the side, until the popularity of that whiskey made it much more than a side hustle.

The distillery was also founded in 1791 at John's Lane, just off Thomas Street in Dublin. At its height the distillery set the standard for modernity and progressive work practices. At the time the distillery had three pot stills, though only one, a 1892-litre still is thought to have been in use.

Following reform of the distilling laws in 1823, the distillery expanded rapidly. In 1827, production was reported at 606,687 liters, and by 1833 had grown to 1,135,000 liters per annum.

In 1871, the distillery was expanded and rebuilt in the Victorian style, becoming one of the most impressive sights in Dublin.

After expansion, output at the distillery rose to 2,650,000 liters per annum, and by the 1880s, had reached about 3,400,000 liters per annum, at which point the distillery covered over six acres of central Dublin, and had a staff of about 300 people.

In 1886, John Power & Son began bottling their own whiskey, rather than following the practice customary at the time, of selling whiskey directly to merchants and bonders who would bottle it themselves.

They were the first Dublin distillery to do so, and one of the first in the world. A gold label adorned each bottle and it was from these that the whiskey got the name Powers Gold Label.

The last member of the family to sit on the board was Sir Thomas Talbot Power, who died in 1930, and with him the Power's Baronetcy. Ownership remained in the family until 1966, and several descendants of his sisters remained at work with the company until recent times.

In 1961, a Coffey still was installed in John's Lane Distillery, allowing the production of vodka and gin, in addition to the testing of grain whiskey for use in blended whiskey. With many of the Irish distilleries having closed in the early 20th century in part due to their failure to embrace a change in consumer preference towards blended whiskey, Powers were instrumental in convincing the remaining Irish distilleries to reconsider their stance on blended whiskey.

In 1966, with the Irish whiskey industry still struggling following Prohibition in the United States, the Anglo-Irish Trade War and the rise of competition from Scotch whiskey, John Power & Son joined forces with the only other remaining distillers in the Irish Republic, the Cork Distilleries Company and their Dublin rivals John Jameson & Son, to form Irish Distillers. 

Irish Distillers decided to close all of their existing distilleries, and to consolidate production at a new purpose-built facility in Midleton. The Middleton distillery opened in 1975, and a year later, production ceased at John's Lane Distillery and began anew in Cork, with Powers Gold Label and many other Irish whiskeys reformulated from single pot stills whiskeys to blends.

Since the closure of the John's Lane distillery, many of the distillery buildings were demolished. However, some of the buildings have been incorporated into the National College of Art and Design, and are now protected structures.

Powers Gold Label - Natural Color (?), Non-chill filtered, 43.2%

BOLDNESS, EXPRESSED IN DIFFERENT WAYS.

"No matter how you're introduced to the Powers family, there's a lot there to like. Each expression brings its own personality, while still telling some stories from John's Lane."

"POWERS GOLD LABEL is cut from the heart of the distillate. That means more top and tail gets thrown away than any other Irish whiskey. Left to mature in selected American oak casks, this is where the spicy, bold character takes hold. A complex and honeyed taste is yours for the taking."

Nose: Oh yes. Immediately I can smell the lovely pot still spice. Very fruity and mellow. Orchard fruits, mainly peaches and green apple. Vannila, butterscotch and some oak. Cinnamon and some black pepper. Biscuits and the smell of fresh french toast with butter.

Taste: The taste is very full, oily. It is great that it has not been chill filtered and the 43.2% abv. is also helping it a lot. Spicy. Starts with a pepper rush followed by sweet vanilla, candied peaches and caramelized apples. Butterscotch and french toast. Cinnamon and cloves. The pot still spice aspect is very much here. It is lovely. A bit earthy and vegetal too. Lots of orchard fruits and caramel. Great taste. Interestingly I cannot pick out the grain whiskey.

Finish: Medium / long. It is nice and spicy. There is a huge amount of vanilla and butterscotch. Peaches and pears with some tropical fruits. Toasted oak. Gets dry by the end. Lovely.

Overall for me this is an outstanding whiskey. One that I will always keep on my shelves until the quality is not getting worse. It tastes like a single pot still whiskey, I do not think for a moment that on a blind tasting I could tell that this is a blended whiskey. Great from nose to finish, an excellent dram to share with your friends that are starting their journey with Irish Whiskey. I did not try but some people also recommend this whiskey for a nice Irish Coffee. I will try that later for sure. This whiskey is getting a very high score of 8.2/10. A huge surprise for me and it swept me off my feet. Lovely stuff. Buy it, try it. Drink it responsibly.

Some pictures in this article are not owned by me, I tagged their owner and I attached a link of their site. All other pictures that have my logo on them are TAKEN AND OWNED BY ME.

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Check out the points on all the whiskies I've rated and ranked head-to-head over on the "Points" page.

Thank you for reading! I hope you enjoyed it. To many more. Sláinte.