It is very much a busy working distillery with little of the charm of the Kilbeggan facility. But the fabulous surroundings, the warmly sweet essence of grain and mash permeating the air and the knowledge that many of my favorite whiskeys -- at least those that I can drink in a few years from that moment -- are being made right there, more than make up for the industrial, utilitarian-looking plant.

At this writing I am pressed for time but will write in far more depth and detail about my visit with Noel Sweeney, Cooley's Master Blender, and Innovation Manager Alex Chesko.  Alex's title alone gives you a sense of Cooley's priorities, just as its whiskeys released over the past few years do.

Cooley really is the driving force of innovation in the Irish whiskey world, and by extension the spirits industry.  The nature of making or drinking whiskey is variety and complexity. Yes, we love our go-to drinks as being comfortably steady and reliable. But even those standards are not static as whiskey styles change over time with the economy and consumer tastes.  Cooley seems to have a three-pronged approach that incorporates making reliable standards such as Tyrconnell Single Malt, recovering and adapting legacy methods, equipment and tastes such as the new Kilbeggan Distillery Reserve, and boldly creating new whiskeys that simultaneously challenge, expand and complement our understanding of what Irish whiskey is. Connemara, the Tyrconnell finishes, the private labelled whiskeys such as John L. Sullivan, and single grain whiskey such as Greenore are prime examples of this. 

We once defined Irish whiskey as triple-distilled, unpeated and made in pot stills. But those were incomplete definitions based on the state of the Irish whiskey industry at one time and marketing needs. Those definitions are now limiting and in some ways contrary to history and nature of whiskey-making -- and the complexity and variety that we all seek in our whiskeys.  That is the opportunity that Cooley is creating and pursuing. 

Again, I'll go into much more detail in the near future on my trips to Kilbeggan and Cooley. For now, here are just a few pictures to give you a rough idea of the Cooley operation.