Irish Whiskeys Under $50 to Try in 2019

Diageo re-entered the growing Irish Whiskey category early 2017 by releasing Roe & Co, a blended Irish whiskey made from grain and malt whiskeys. Roe & Co Irish Whiskey matured in bourbon casks, a great proportion of which were first-fill barrels. Bottled at 45% ABV without chill-filtration. (SRP $34.99)

This brand was created as a collaboration between Flor Prendergast and New Hampshire-based Tamworth Distilling founder, Steven Grasse. The whiskey was distilled and aged in West Cork and is a blend of 10 year-old malt and 4 year-old grain whiskey. It finished its maturation in American rye casks sourced from Tamworth for six months. This Irish-American collaboration features John Morrissey (then aged 22) and Yankee Sullivan (then aged 40) on the label. Their infamous fight in Boston Corners, New York (then Massachusetts) on October 12, 1853 went 37 rounds with Morrissey being declared the winner despite Sullivan knocking him out.

Named for the rugged Atlantic coastal region, Connemara Original Peated Single Malt is one of just a few Irish whiskies that celebrate the revival of the tradition of drying the malted barley over peat fires.  The peat smoke that rises from the fires up through the drying malts guilds the barley with a delicately complexity that speak to the rich history of Irish whiskey production.  This whiskey is bottled after being rested in ex-bourbon barrels at a gentle 80 proof.

Proper No. Twelve Irish Whiskey is a brand founded by Mixed Martial Arts Champion Conor McGregor under his Eire Born Spirits company. The name refers to the southwest area where McGregor hails, Dublin 12. McGregor worked in concert with master distiller David Elder, formerly of Guinness, to decide on the final blend selected from almost 100 blends. This is a triple-distilled blended whiskey matured in former bourbon barrels. Notably, the company will donate $5 for every case sold to local first responder organizations & charities up to $1 million annually.

This blended Irish whiskey is a collaboration between Master Distiller Darryl McNally of The Dublin Liberties Distillery (set to open summer 2018) and co-founders of The Dead Rabbit, Sean Muldoon & Jack McGarry. The sourced whiskey was first aged in seasoned bourbon barrels for five years and then finished in small virgin American oak barrels. Released for the NYC bar's fifth anniversary on February 12, 2018 in New York and New Jersey with an expansion to select markets in April of that year.

The Sexton Single Malt Irish Whiskey is triple distilled from 100% malted Irish barley using copper pot stills. Aged in ex-oloroso sherry butts for a minimum of four years. Bottled in a unique, solid black hexagonal bottle at 40% ABV. Available in the US beginning November 2017.

This Irish whiskey brand is a collaboration between Camus Cognac and the Baring Family's Revelstoke Trust. The brand launched in the US during the first quarter of 2018. This triple-distilled blend is aged first in ex-bourbon barrels. The whiskey then finishes its maturation in ex-cognac barrels which were exposed to sea air. Lambay shares its name with the island just off the coast of Dublin in the Irish Sea which the Baring Family has owned since 1904. This private island is also an animal sanctuary.

Glendalough is an independent distillery founded by five friends that has lead the craft revival in Ireland. Having made a splash with their poitín styles, this double-barrel whiskey is a step in a new direction. It's made from a mash bill of malted barley and corn distilled in Coffey stills. It matured for 3 years in ex-bourbon barrels and finished its maturation in 500-liter oloroso sherry casks. Please note, updated packaging for this product in 2018. (SRP $34.99)

Tyrconnell was an Irish whiskey brand produced at now defunct Watt Distillery. They named a whiskey after their horse, The Tyrconnell, which subsequently won a race at 100 to 1 odds back in 1876. This whiskey is currently distilled at Cooley Distillery (and soon at the refurbished Kilbeggan Distillery) and is a double distilled single malt whiskey. Most Irish whiskeys on the market are triple distilled and/or blended, but that is trend is slowly changing.

Method and Madness is the experimental microdistillery located at Midleton Distillery where Irish whiskey brands like Jameson and Redbreast among many others are produced. This Method and Madness Single Grain ages initially in first-fill bourbon barrels and finishes its maturation in virgin Spanish oak. Bottled at 92 proof.

Powers Three Swallow is a single pot still whiskey made from a mix of unmalted and malted barley. It is aged in American oak ex-bourbon barrels and finishes its maturation in oloroso sherry casks. Three Swallow bears no age statement and is bottled at 80 proof. As of October 2018, this product is available in the US.

Kilbeggan Small Batch Rye is a limited edition Irish whiskey available beginning mid-November 2018. It is made from a mash bill of malted and unmalted barley and around 30% rye. Since Single Pot Still whiskeys cannot have more than 5% of any grain other than barley, it doesn't qualify as such technically. It is double distilled in copper pot stills, one of which was made in the early 1800s and is the oldest working pot still in the world. Rye was used by Irish distillers in the late 1800s, but it disappeared around the time of Prohibition and the Irish War of Independence. It is the first Kilbeggan whiskey to be 100% distilled and matured at the Kilbeggan Distillery since it was restored in 2010.