Ashford Castle has announced a new partnership with Midleton Very Rare Whiskey and Waterford Crystal to launch a bespoke cask specifically for the 800-year-old castle hotel.
The deal will also see the creation of crystal whiskey tumblers and carafe bearing the Ashford logo.
Built in the 13th century and once home to the famous Guinness family, Ashford Castle became a hotel in 1939, hosting royalty, dignitaries and heads of state.
In 2013, it was purchased by Red Carnation and the Tollman family, and after a $75 million restoration project, it was brought back to its former glory.
In addition to a complete restoration, the project also added a wine cellar, billiards room and cigar terrace.
Long a whiskey aficionado, owner Stanley Tollman has particular interest in this project, and has been involved in it from inception to finish.
The Midleton Distillery is home to the largest inventory of maturing Irish whiskey in the world.
Its master distiller, Brian Nation, hand-selects the finest whiskeys for the Midleton Very Rare collection.
This includes releases such as single pot stills, single cask bottlings, travel retail exclusives, special editions and prestige and ultra-prestige bottlings.
Cask #70345 is an American virgin oak barrel that was filled with a medium style pot still.
A virgin oak barrel means it hasn’t held bourbon prior to arriving to Midleton, thus making the contribution from the oak a lot richer and more profound.
The style of pot still distillate retains the classic spicy character holding up to the significant wood element to give good balance.
Waterford was first established in 1783 on land adjacent to Merchants’ Quay in the heart of the Irish harbour town of Waterford, just minutes from the present-day House of Waterford Crystal.
The business thrived for 70 years before falling victim to the economy and world events.
The company saw a resurgence after World War II and has since regained its status as some of the world’s finest crystal today.
“We are thrilled to be partnering with two such iconic brands,” said general manager Niall Rochford, “particularly ones that so closely reflect the standard and attitude toward guest experience that Ashford Castle espouses.”