The Teeling family have a long history in Irish whiskey, and much like Irish whiskey in general is experiencing something of a revival, brothers Jack and Stephen Teeling are doing their part by reinstating the family legacy. Having released several grain, blended and single malt whiskies under the Teeling brand (which are all rather good!) over the past few years, The Teeling Whiskey Company officially opened the first distillery in Dublin for 125 years in June 2015.
To commemorate this momentous occasion, Teeling have released The Revival, a 15 year-old ex-rum cask matured single malt whiskey. Limited to 10,000 bottles, this is the first release in the upgraded Vintage Reserve Collection and will be followed by new 24 and 33 year-old bottlings.
I had the pleasure of sampling this latest offering as part of a Tweet Tasting from the ever-wonderful Whisky Wire – many thanks as always to Steve Rush (@TheWhiskyWire) for setting this up.
Colour & First Impressions
Sand-gold. Fairly light in appearance, which may suggest that the ex-rum cask influence is subdued.
Nose
Initially sweet and tropical – tinned pineapple with some softer orchard fruits. There is some zesty citrus lingering in the background along with a little oaky spice. Given some time in the glass, things start to become more spicy and oak-influenced – crystallised ginger makes an appearance. Very pleasantly balanced!
Taste
Initially sweet with warm spice – a banana fritter with vanilla ice cream. Bright tropical and citrus fruit develop mid-palate; more pineapple and lime.
Finish & Final Impressions
The fruit continues to build to a crescendo, leaving a lingering finish of peaches in syrup. The rum cask aging has been expertly managed here, not overwhelming at all.
Details
- Ex-rum cask matured
- Distilled 1999
- Bottled 2015
- Bottled at 46% ABV
- No colouring
- Non chill-filtered
- 10,000 bottles available