Irish Whiskey

Irish whiskey, known in Irish as Fuisce or uisce beatha (meaning "water of life"), is produced on the island of Ireland. Once the world’s most popular spirit, Irish whiskey faced a steep decline from the late 19th century, dropping from at least 28 distilleries in the 1890s to just two by the 1960s. These remaining distilleries—Bushmills and Old Midleton—eventually became part of Irish Distillers.

The industry began to recover with the opening of Cooley Distillery in 1987, marking the first new distillery in decades. Since the 1990s, Irish whiskey has experienced a major revival, becoming one of the fastest-growing spirits globally. By the end of 2019, Ireland had 32 active distilleries, with more in development.

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