If you’re Irish (or even if you’re not) everyone knows that St. Patrick’s Day is the Holy Grail of Irish holidays. To really get into the spirit you need to keep a few things in mind:

• Wear green (although certainly cute, green underwear doesn’t really count)
• Start your day with a bright green bagel (you can go carb-free the rest of the week)
• Enjoy your favorite Irish foods—whether it be corned beef and cabbage, Irish soda bread or a big pot of boiled potatoes—some hearty Irish fare is just what’s called for on March 17th
• Sip your favorite beer, with a side of green. Don’t fear the dye, it’s the only day all year that it’s acceptable to drink emerald suds
• Toast to Ireland with your favorite Irish Whiskey. Beautiful, amber colored liquid gold in your glass. Smooth, aromatic, with an ultra long silky finish.

What? You don’t have any Irish Whiskey? Read on about some of our favorites and then come in and get yours:

Bushmills Original Irish Whiskey
A blend of their own unique triple distilled malt whiskey and a lighter grain whiskey. You’ll notice it’s rich, smooth warming taste almost instantly. It’s an easy drinking, versatile whiskey that can be enjoyed neat, over ice or with your favorite mixer.

Tullamore D.E.W. Original Irish Whiskey
Born in the heart of Ireland in 1829, with a complex taste derived from three types of grain, triple distillation and the blend of all three Irish whiskeys. Early fresh fruit leads to a definite light spike followed by some toasted wood which evolves into a delicious vanilla sweetness in this whiskey.

Kilbeggan Traditional Irish Whiskey
Easy going and approachable, but with its own distinctive style. The finest grain and malt whiskeys are blended together for a smooth, sweet taste and lovely malt finish, a characteristic of our pot still that is over 180 year old and still at the heart of Kilbeggan Irish whiskey.

Jameson Irish Whiskey Black Barrel Select Reserve 80°
Twice charred for a good measure, it’s a triple distilled blend of rich pot still and grain whiskey that is matured in a mixture of sherry casks and bourbon barrels. The flavor is intense and enhanced – the grain whiskey in specially flame charred bourbon barrels delivers more concentrated spice, nutty notes and vanilla sweetness, while the pot still whiskey in sherry casks adds sherry fruit flavors and a rich finish.

Green Spot Irish Whiskey Pot Still
Crafted in the heart of Ireland from malted and un-malted barley, which are milled and mashed before being distilled through a traditional pot still. An aroma of butterscotch, caramel, honeyed oak, pine and orange that gives way to notes of citrus, tart apples, plums and apricots on the palate. The finish is smooth yet slightly spicy, with a touch of cinnamon and ginger.

Tyrconnell Single Malt Irish Whiskey
Distilled in the old Irish tradition this pure pot still single malt whiskey uses only the most natural Irish ingredients of barley and fresh spring water. The resulting whiskey is then left to peacefully mature in oak casks stored in 200-year-old granite warehouses allowing it to develop its full flavor and character.

Find them—and dozens of others—at your nearest Wine Country Stores or Wine and Whiskey Country Stores or online at www.4wineandwhiskey.com

 

At Wine Country’s recent “Evening of Wine & Whiskey” sponsored by The Ahavath Torah Sisterhood of Englewood, NJ, we had an opportunity to try some truly incredible wines, but some of the biggest surprises of the night had nothing to do with wine at all. 

One of the best things we tried came from Prohibition Distillery. It was a gin different from any we had tasted before. It was smooth, didn’t burn at all and was actually good enough to sip… without any tonic. 

Founder and Master Distiller of Prohibition Distillery Brian Facquet, spent time explaining the history of gin to us (originating in Holland or Belgium several hundred years ago) and detailed what made his gin really stand out (and believe us, it does).

Here’s why, directly from the Prohibition Distillery website: 

Our Gin is created from the combination of five botanicals. We spent four years perfecting this special recipe and proud to bring its complex, yet dry, “Old World Gin” flavor to your palate today.

We were inspired by the classic London dry gins that use a maceration process and a simple botanical blend. Our goal was to have a Juniper forward gin and pull complementary floral, earthy and citrus notes from the Coriander seeds, Lemon Verbena leaves, Orris Root, also known as Iris root, and bitter orange peels.

We steep our botanicals in 120 proof neutral spirit made from 100% Corn for 24 hours to produce our maceration. We then distill the gin in our 300 gallon pot still to remove all of the color and bind the flavors. The “Hearts” are captured and blended down to 94 proof for bottling.

Our gin is Gluten Free and Certified Kosher from the Orthodox Union. So when you’d like to indulge your senses in a highly refined botanical blend, give our Bootlegger 21 NY Gin a taste and let at least one of your senses have five reasons to cheer.


Feel like trying some Bootlegger Gin now, don’t you? Well good luck finding this Micro Distillery’s gin just anywhere. It’s only available at select retailers… but WE HAVE IT. That’s right, WE HAVE IT. At every Wine Country Store  and Wine & Whiskey Country store. Come in and pick up a bottle today and if you forget the tonic, that’s absolutely ok! Cheers!
 

It’s bigger and better than last year—and last year was pretty awesome! The 2nd Annual Whiskey Festival of New Jersey…over 75 different whiskies to sample, some you’ve probably never even tried, plus fabulous craft cocktails, gourmet food and even live music.

This Fall, Wine Country Stores, Wine & Whiskey Country Stores and Breakthru Beverage are joining forces to help raise funds for St. Joseph’s Children’s Hospital.

Held at the Pig & Price restaurant in Montclair, NJ on Thursday, October 6th, the venue is bigger than last year, the assortment of spirits are more diverse and the food from Pig & Prince includes everything from coconut shrimp to house made soft pretzels, three olive tapenade with focaccia to garlic and black pepper crusted sirloin of beef and everything in between.

“Last year’s Whiskey Festival of New Jersey was a hit, but this year’s is going to be even better,” said Scott Maybaum President, Wine Country Management. “Our venue is better, the menu of gourmet foods from Pig & Prince will blow you away and we’ll be tasting some high end and limited expression whiskies that most people have never tasted before.”

Don’t delay—get your ticket today because once it sells out, it sells out! General admission tickets are $60 each; VIP tickets are $95 and can be purchased online at eventbrite.com or at your local Wine Country Store or Wine & Whiskey Country Store. Plus, for a limited time, you’ll get a FREE Whisky Clan tee shirt with every ticket purchased.

Looking forward to seeing you there!