Question on Connemara singles casks?

[kurtbenoit]

How come the newly released 18 year old Connemara Single cask has less than 70 bottles but the 17 year old from last year has approx 300. I'm leaving myself open to being outed as a complete idiot here but I'm very curious.

[JohnM]

I'd say they are sharing the barrel with someone else, although I don't know. A bourbon barrel will yield much less bottles than a sherry cask, of course, but 70 is still very low, especially at 46%.

[TheWhiskeyBro]

Yes, this is quite common, a cask is shared amongst a group of retailers, each claims exclusivity in the form of their name appearing on the label but with the same cask number. In fairness Cooley haven't done this too often, however numerous examples of Bushmill's single casks being shared.

I'm sure we'll discover in time who has taken up the slack in this cask.

[IainB]

Who's saying they have 70?

I can think of at least 3 places in Ireland that probably would stock it - CWS, Fox's and the distillery shop in Kilbeggan. I imagine Fox's wouldn't stock many.

Then Royal Mile Whiskies often carry Tyrconnell single cask whiskeys. These 4 could go a long way towards using up a single cask.

[kurtbenoit]

CWS are the only one I see stocking the 18 year old, they're the ones saying 70 bottles and also saying it's exclusive to them.

[bredman]

Could it also be a cask that has had a leak? This must happen from time to time.

[JohnM]

CWS are the only one I see stocking the 18 year old, they're the ones saying 70 bottles and also saying it's exclusive to them.

I've seen stockists in Beligum get half casks, I think from Cooley, before too. Or could be the whisky exchange, or somewhere else. Or, as bredman says, could be a leaky cask.

[IainB]

CWS are the only one I see stocking the 18 year old, they're the ones saying 70 bottles and also saying it's exclusive to them.

When CWS say exclusive I don't think they count the Kilbeggan distillery shop. Also they might mean exclusive to Ireland.

[IrishWhiskeyChaser]

CWS are the only one I see stocking the 18 year old, they're the ones saying 70 bottles and also saying it's exclusive to them.

When CWS say exclusive I don't think they count the Kilbeggan distillery shop. Also they might mean exclusive to Ireland.

I think your thinking on this would be right Iain ...

[Malt-Teaser]

Rather than start a new thread I was looking for somewhere to post about Connemara single casks, I hope this is the right place.

Anyway, I have now tried three different ones and two were brilliant. Yesterday at the Munich whisky fair I tried a single cask bottling from the Whisky Agency / Whisky fair (Limburg).
Details are; K01/10 1196, 20th March 2001-25th March 2009, bottle No.117, 59.2%

Sadly, I found this a little light, although to be honest I didn't have the opportunity to add water and experiment more with it. I still award it a decent score of 83 points as it wasn't a bad whisky, just not a very very good one or great.

Malty

[JohnM]

Was it a bourbon cask, Malt-teaser?

[Malt-Teaser]

Hi John,
this is all the info I have:

ConnemaraSC.jpg (78.75 KiB) Viewed 1406 times

My guess is that it was a bourbon cask, but maybe the good folk here know this cask better than I?

[Malt-Teaser]

Just for the record I've now managed to get my tasting notes for that Connemara Single Cask online:
http://www.whisky-emporium.com/UK/ActualTastingNotes/Cooley.htm#Con-SC-K0110

It's amidst my other Connemara (and indeed all Cooley) notes so page around to see the various expressions and now 3 different single casks that I've written notes for.

Malty