We’ve been talking a lot about rye whiskey lately. The gist is rye is taking the world by storm right now with expressions popping up all over, especially outside of the U.S. One of the newest additions to the rye style is coming from Ireland.
Irish Distillers created a micro-distillery that operates within their huge Midleton campus down in County Cork. Midleton is renowned for making the lion’s share of Irish whiskey with names like Powers, Redbreast, Paddy, and Jameson under their roof. Their micro-distillery focuses on one brand though, Method and Madness, which operates as a sort of Irish whiskey lab for unique mash bills, maturations, and blends.
Their latest release, Method and Madness Rye and Malt, embraces both the current trend of unique Irish whiskey drops and the world’s love of rye whiskey. We were lucky enough to get our hands on a bottle recently so let’s get into what’s in that bottle.
Method and Madness Rye & Malt
ABV: 46%
Average Price: $105
The Whiskey:
Distiller Katherine Condon created this whiskey using a mash bill of 60 percent rye and 40 percent malted barley. That spirit then spent several years chilling out in ex-bourbon casks before it was proofed and bottled.
Tasting Notes:
There’s this juxtaposition of lemon pepper and a rush of lavender on the nose that’s so pronounced it’s almost impossible to get anything else. The palate veers away from that towards a cedar box stuffed with spicy, dry tobacco leaves dusted with white pepper, cloves, and a dark chocolate powder cut with ground-up dried chili flakes. The mid-palate sweetens slightly with a touch of dates soaked in black tea next to ginger snap cookies.
The Bottle:
Method and Madness’ bottles are cool on their own. The glass has a great art-deco vibe with a label that invokes Alfons Mucha. It’s hefty, eye-catching, and feels totally unique.
Bottom Line:
This was an interesting entry in the rye pantheon. It felt very familiar while having a lightness that ringed very Irish, which was a good thing. It’s balanced and nuanced. But, in the end, it feels more like a really solid cocktail whiskey that you only grab as a sipper in a pinch.
Ranking:
89/100 — This was a solid, albeit light rye. It’ll be way too light for some fans of the powerhouse, high ABV ryes coming out of Kentucky. But as an easy-sipper and cocktail base, it shines.
