Redbreast 12 is creamy and complex - a sophisticated Irish whiskey

Redbreast is an old Irish whiskey mark, but the current incarnation is a product of Irish Distillers and made at the Midleton Distillery in Cork. This is where Midleton (the finest whiskey made in Ireland) is made - as well as Jameson. The new Redbreast has been getting rave reviews and has a big following in Ireland. Here are my tasting notes:
Beautiful golden honey-bronze in the glass. Aroma is creamy and mild with a hint of sherry. After more time in the glass (give this one plenty of time to open up) there are red fruit notes and vanilla joining the cream sherry. Lovely. First sip gives us the sweet and clean Irish whiskey flavors of minty spirit but immediately a rich and creamy oily quality emerges and a host of new floral, sherry, oaky vanilla, and fruit flavors appear in the mid-palate. The fruit notes I'm getting are sultanas (white grape raisins). Finish is longer than usual for an Irish whiskey, with baked goods, more sultanas, and that sherry oak quality lingering.

I've just used a lot of flavor words but the dominant impression I get is a creamy mildness. "Smooth" is an over-used word in connection with whiskey and almost a bad word when talking about single malts - but this is an extremely rich, creamy, smooth malt - well seasoned with sherry, fruit and oak. It's a very mellow and easy drink - but with an excellent, if subtle, character. Balance, richness, poise and fuller flavor profile that most Irish whiskeys. A honey and a keeper.

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