There are three styles of Uisce Beatha common to Ireland, Single Malt, Single Grain and Pure Pot Still. Peat is rarely used in the malting, giving Irish Whiskey a smoother finish. Pure Pot Still is unique to Ireland and traditionally made from a mixture of malted and unmalted barley. Originally widespread in Ireland, a number of historical events led to a drastic reduction in the number of distilleries. Now one of Ireland's highest rated Whiskeys in Jim Murray's Bible, Writers Tears is leading the charge to recreate some of the great Whiskeys of the 19th century.
Pure Pot Still Whiskey dates back to 1802 when the British levied a tax on Irish Malt. Irish spirit accounted for 90% of all the worlds exported Whiskey and was seen as a cash cow by the British. In an effort to avoid the unjust taxes, distillers began to use a higher percentage of unmalted barley. This resulted in a very different style called the Pure Pot Still, it gained popularity as the champagne of Irish Whiskey and became a favourite with Irish writers throughout the 19th and 20th centuries. The Writers Tears Distillery is situated amongst the beautiful pastoral scenery of County Carlow. It was established with the sole objective of rediscovering and recreating some of the great Whiskey recipes of old.
