McConnell’s 5 year old Irish Whisky (42%)
I’ve been a fan of this whisky since it was introduced to LCBO shelves, so it comes as a bit of a surprise that I have not as yet reviewed it. But while I know that I’ve mentioned it in several stories, including this seasonally relevant one, I can’t for the life of me find a review, so here it goes.
McConnell’s is an historic Belfast whiskey brand, or rather whisky, as McConnell’s eschews the traditional ‘ey’ ending used for most Irish whiskeys, since they say that their brand actually predates the addition of the ‘e.’ Born in the late 18th century, it was for at least 50 years led by Hugh McConnell, who like many others of the era sourced and aged whiskeys to bottle under his own name.
By 1841, however, Hugh had died and his wife Eleanor soldiered on with the business, according to the distillery website, “appearing in Martin’s Trade Directory as a ‘rectifying distiller’ in 1841.” The use of the term “rectifying” suggests that Eleanor was still sourcing spirits, but perhaps double or triple distilling them prior to aging. A new distillery was built at the end of the 19th century and the company endured through hardships, including two fires, through to the 1930s, when the doors were finally closed.
The revived McConnell’s has built a distillery in a wing of Belfast’s historic Crumlin Road Gaol, but as work on the project only began in August of 2022, the five year old whisky in this bottle would need to have been sourced from elsewhere, just as Hugh did over two centuries ago.
Pale gold in colour, the nose of McConnell’s offers sweetish notes of vanilla and lemon, with soft undertones of floral honey and a hint of cinnamon stick. As whisky aromas go, it is less complex than some, but definitely more inviting than others, positioning this as a whisky novice’s dream.
The palate entry is sweet and a bit butterscotchy, but not even close to so much so that it is anything other than inviting, with hints of candied pear. On the mid-palate, the butterscotch turns more caramel and vanilla, with a touch of banana evident alongside some baking spice, a touch of black pepper, and a softly herbaceous quality, parsley and perhaps a hint of sage. The finish dries delightfully to off-dry and lingers with oak, dry vanilla, and indistinct spice.
As a flagship whisky, this bodes extremely well for the distillery’s future, and invites the drinker to perhaps explore further other expressions, including the currently available in Ontario sherry cask and cognac cask finishes.
89 ($51 - $55)
