Irish

Irish whiskeys are normally distilled three times, Cooley Distillery being the exception as they also double distil.^[75] Though traditionally distilled using pot stills, the column still is now used to produce grain whiskey for blends. By law, Irish whiskey must be produced in Ireland and aged in wooden casks for a period of no less than three years, although in practice it is usually three or four times that period.^[76] Unpeated malt is almost always used, the main exception being Connemara Peated Malt whiskey. There are several types of whiskey common to Ireland: single malt, single grain, blended whiskey and single pot still whiskey.

Irish whiskey was once the most popular spirit in the world, though a long period of decline from the late 19th century to the late 20th century greatly damaged the industry,^[77] so much so that, although Ireland boasted over 30 distilleries in the 1890s, a century later this number had fallen to just three. However, it has seen a great resurgence in popularity since the late twentieth century, and has been the fastest growing spirit in the world every year since 1990.^[77] With exports growing by over 15% per annum in recent years, existing distilleries have been expanded and a number of new distilleries constructed. As of mid 2019, Ireland now has 25 operating distilleries, with 24 more either planned or under development.^[78] However, many of these have not been operating long enough to have products sufficiently aged for sale, and only one was operating prior to 1975.