Comments on: Ask Your Bartender: Protestant vs. Catholic Whiskey (Repost)

By: Mark Davis

Mark Davis — Fri, 19 Mar 2010 05:45:52 +0000

Colum Egan (Master Distiller of Bushmills) is himself a Catholic. John Jameson was Pentecostal.

One more thing… Since Pernod Ricard shut down the grain stills at the old Bushmills distillery, all of the grain whiskey in Bushmills is from Middleton!

All of this is just silly, Ireland is totally united in the bottle.

The full like of Bushmills (and a couple of other Irish whiskeys) will be available for sampling at Whiskies of the World on March 27th. Check it out: http://whiskiesoftheworld.com

By: Drago

Drago — Wed, 17 Mar 2010 18:27:00 +0000

My grandmother preferred Bushmills (on ice, with a large splash of water).

And since I inherited her mother’s sideboard, now repurposed as the bar in my den, I shall drink Bushmills tonight.

By: G M Brinkman

G M Brinkman — Wed, 17 Mar 2010 01:43:08 +0000

When Tug McGraw was interviewed after winning the world series in 1980, they asked him what he was going to spend his series winnings on. He said he was going to spend 90% of it on women and Irish whiskey and the other 10% he was going to waste!

Have an O’Hara’s Red and a Jamison on me. Happy St Patty’s Day.

By: Jamie O'neal

Jamie O'neal — Wed, 10 Mar 2010 16:05:49 +0000

I like Jamesons….and…I like Bushmills…and…I like Tullamore Dew….and I don’t care if they’re made by Indonesian monks that hate my mother…they’re just tasty.

By: paddy hirsch

paddy hirsch — Fri, 08 Jan 2010 21:30:30 +0000

To complicate the issue even more, Bushmills has been owned by a big drinks corporation since 1972 (first Irish Distillers, now Diageo), but before then it was owned by a Scottish Jew!

By: Albert

Albert — Fri, 13 Nov 2009 08:00:57 +0000

Jesus, Mary and Joseph! Not one of ya mentions Knappogue Castle. In particular – the 1951 offering of which I’ve never tasted its superior. Mind you the order as I see it goes – Knappogue ‘51 > Midleton Rare > Knappogue 15 > Redbreast > Black Bush > Knappogue ‘92 > Tullamore Dew (makes for the best Irish Coffee) > Then take your pick of the Jamesons/Bushmills/Cooley offerings. But generally, if you like it sweet, you like Jamesons products (including Redbreast, 1780, and Powers) If you like it dry, you’ll prefer the Busmills lineup. And if you just like something different – then Cooley’s your distillery (though that Michael Collins stuff is shite).

My two farthings on the matter. ;)

By: Rob McHardy

Rob McHardy — Fri, 25 Sep 2009 20:54:26 +0000

Holy moly,
I’m an Irish barman and I am stunned by the ignorant waffle that some Irish Americans spew about the “‘oul sod”.
These two fine whiskeys should be enjoyed in a glass and not on some pseudo-religious podium.
DONT EVER ask an Irish person , north or south if they are catholic or protestant because they will look at you with contempt.
If you want to support Ireland, go and visit and maybe read a few history books and hopefully realise that most normal people don’t give a toss about religious leanings

By: Edward

Edward — Thu, 13 Aug 2009 15:40:06 +0000

No votes for Dunphey’s? Hmmm.

By: Patrick

Patrick — Sun, 02 Aug 2009 00:19:07 +0000

Oh, don’t be a hater, just drink both.

In Ireland they’d drink either, but rarely had enough money for more than a pint ‘o the local beer.

I’d suggest Tullamore Dew, it was founded by Catholics and is still owned by a nice Irish Catholic company.

As the Protestants had pretty much a stranglehold over all shipping in the country, they refused to ship Dew in favor of the Protestant-produced Jameson.

Such days are long over, and Dew is rapidly making up the difference in sales, and has already overtaken Jamison in may countries in Europe.

By: Kevin Erskine

Kevin Erskine — Mon, 11 May 2009 12:44:52 +0000

Oh and Bushmills was NOT licensed to distill in 1608…That’s marketing Bullshit. There were licenses to distill granted in and around the Bushmill’s area in 1608.

By: Kevin Erskine

Kevin Erskine — Mon, 11 May 2009 12:26:28 +0000

Not enough time to read through comments. But until 2005 BOTH distilleries were owned by Pernod-Ricard.

By: Andrew

Andrew — Fri, 01 May 2009 08:07:13 +0000

Hi all, please don’t reinforce past troubles by making brand choices based on hatred. I lived through this and lost people to it, and it saddens me to read this.

Bushmills is a great whisky celebrating an important anniversary this year with an updated look that will appear in late 2009. Jamesons too is lovely.

By: Cielo Gold

Cielo Gold — Fri, 24 Apr 2009 02:58:59 +0000

Thanks for the clarification. I was wondering this myself.

By: D, Muldoon

D, Muldoon — Wed, 22 Apr 2009 06:23:10 +0000

Mmmm…..Middleton distillery….
While Redbreast is great, wonderful stuff, don’t ever pass up a chance to sample their self-titled Middleton. Just don’t do anything silly like order it on the rocks…it’s way too good for that. Paid 10 Euro for a shot of it in Dublin, and well worth the price.

By: d.clark

d.clark — Sun, 12 Apr 2009 01:01:02 +0000

Dear sir, I know you did a bit on”Sangrita”, but I was wondering if you have a good recipe for Sangria. I am going to be the bartender at my college prom, and need a drink that will be popular with “the kids”…

By: Jenny Adams

Jenny Adams — Fri, 10 Apr 2009 02:54:57 +0000

Here’s the real question – why does everyone insist on handing us shots of jameson late night in colorado? is that a catholic thing?
Also – how does Navan end up in a Heineken? Is Misty protestant?

Sincerely,
Surley in Alabama

By: Bill

Bill — Thu, 09 Apr 2009 06:14:43 +0000

I’m a Redbreast man first when feeling flush, but usually turn to Power’s or the old John J when cash flow is normal.

Paddy is pretty readily available in the New York Metro Area, but I’ve never seen it since I left for warmer climes.

Bushmills I like, but I like Irish Whisky best of all the brown stuff. I don’t generally buy it, but I’ll drink it without complaint. The regular is fine; the Black Bush is nice if maybe too refined for me when I want a dram of Irish.

But the Bushmills Distillery Reserve, a bottle of which my very, very good sister recently brought back as a gift from Belfast, is holy smoking delicious good.

And, no, I won’t share.

By: Greg in SF

Greg in SF — Wed, 08 Apr 2009 05:26:43 +0000

“No one here has a soft spot in their heart for Paddy’s?”

I do.

Bad Catholic that I am, I always drank Bushmills over Jameson. The Protestant/Catholic thing was explained to me as a labor dispute where a bunch of Catholic Derrymen were laid off from the Bushmill’s distillery or some shite.

Currently, I go though a case of Jameson for every bottle of Bushmills that we sell at our bar. Whoever owns Paddy’s also owns one of these bigger brands and wont export to the US because they know they would cannibalize their own market share.

By: Phill

Phill — Sat, 04 Apr 2009 00:29:52 +0000

I think Paddy’s may be even rarer in the US than Powers. I’ve never even seen a bottle of Paddy’s (although I haven’t really been making an exhaustive search).

By: dawoo

dawoo — Fri, 03 Apr 2009 14:29:33 +0000

No one here has a soft spot in their heart for Paddy’s?

By: Michael Robertson

Michael Robertson — Thu, 02 Apr 2009 17:33:57 +0000

Wow, not one mention of Tullamore Dew. It has been my favorite since discovering it at the Buena Vista Cafe in San Francisco. It was their house label Irish before it was readily available in the US. I went to the Distillery in Tullamore(now a museum for the whiskey), it is now produced in Middleton, although it is no longer owned by Pernod-Ricard. Great smooth flavor and a soft long finish. I think Irish whiskey is like Scotch, meant for sipping, not mixing.

By: Tim

Tim — Wed, 01 Apr 2009 16:23:48 +0000

Thanks, Mike. I should have thought of other whisk(e)y cocktails when typing that last thought. I’ve used Irish Whiskey in Old Fashions and Sours before with tasty results. I’ll have to try a Manhattan next.

By: Ted Munat

Ted Munat — Tue, 31 Mar 2009 17:41:43 +0000

Regarding the Catholic/Protestant/Jewish/Corn Beef relationship…

Man is walking down the street in Belfast. Robber jumps out of an alley, holds up a gun, and says, “Are you a Protestant or a Catholic?” Man says, “Neither, I’m a jew.” Robber thinks for a moment, says, “but are you a Protestant Jew or a Catholic Jew?”

Alternate version:

“are you a Protestant or a Catholic?”
“neither, I’m a Jew.”
“Then I must be the luckiest Arab in all o’ Ireland!”

By: Mike S.

Mike S. — Tue, 31 Mar 2009 05:14:57 +0000

Tim, I made a great Manhattan variation last night with 2oz Powers Gold Label, 1oz Carpano Punt E Mes and a dash or two of Angostura (regular, not orange), stirred up with a cherry garnish and enjoyed it very much indeed. No coffee or anything green.

By: Tim

Tim — Mon, 30 Mar 2009 20:27:00 +0000

I will second the Powers recommendation to add some turf to the fire. Although, when faced with only Jameson and Bushmills, I will usually go for the Bushmills. I find Jameson to be a bit too… sweet, I guess. Redbreast makes for good sipping but for my budget Powers is my standby.

I usually drink my whiskey neat but would anyone be able to recommend an Irish whiskey cocktail/mixed drink that doesn’t included coffee or a green liquid?