The Tyrconnell 10 Year Old Sherry Cask Finish Irish Whiskey

The Tyrconnell 10 Year Old Sherry Cask Finish Irish Whiskey is a 46% ABV (92 proof) single malt in a 750mL bottle — 10 years in ex-bourbon barrels, then finished 6–8 months in Oloroso sherry casks, from the double-distilled Cooley Distillery house style that makes Irish single malts differently from nearly everyone else, available to order online at Del Mesa Liquor, San Diego, CA.

• ABV: 46% (92 proof), bottled non-chill filtered
• Size: 750mL
• Age: 10 years in American oak/ex-bourbon, finished 6–8 months in Oloroso sherry casks
• Distillation: 100% Irish malted barley, DOUBLE pot-still distilled (unusual — most Irish whiskey is triple distilled), unpeated
• Origin: Cooley Distillery, Cooley Peninsula, County Louth, Ireland (Kilbeggan Distilling Co., Beam Suntory)
• Awards: Gold, 2011 San Francisco World Spirits Competition; Best Irish Single Malt, 2013 World Whisky Awards; 97 pts, Beverage Testing Institute; 94 pts, Wine Enthusiast 2012

The Racehorse Whiskey, Sherry-Finished

The Tyrconnell name goes back to 1876, when the Watt family's chestnut colt Tyrconnell won the Irish National Produce Stakes at 100-to-1 — they named a whiskey for him. Cooley's John Teeling revived the brand in 1988 and relaunched it in 1993 as a double-distilled single malt, and the 10-year sherry finish has been the flagship ever since. Double distillation (rather than Ireland's usual triple) leaves a creamier, more viscous spirit that takes sherry wood beautifully: the Oloroso finish layers sherry-soaked raisins, dried apricot and plum, toasted nuts, and baking spice over the honeyed barley base. Shop our Irish whiskey collection, browse the Tyrconnell range, or compare the port-finished sibling for a side-by-side of the two finishes.

Tasting Notes

Sherry-soaked raisins, dried fruit (apricot, plum), toasted nuts, and honey on the nose with vanilla and baking spice. The palate is syrupy and sweet-leaning — honeyed malt, dried fruit, crème brûlée — finishing medium-long with pepper and sweet oak.

How to Enjoy

Neat in a Glencairn at room temperature to catch the sherry interplay; a drop of water opens the dried-fruit notes. Works well as the malt backbone of an Irish whiskey old fashioned.

Frequently Asked Questions

Why is it called The Tyrconnell?
For a racehorse — the Watt family's chestnut colt Tyrconnell won the 1876 Irish National Produce Stakes at 100-to-1, and the family named a whiskey after him.

Isn't Irish whiskey usually triple distilled?
Yes — that's what makes Tyrconnell unusual. It's double pot-still distilled, giving a creamier, more viscous single malt.

What's the difference between the sherry and port finishes?
Same 10-year base, different finish casks — sherry gives dried fruit, nuts, and honey; port gives red berries, jam, and dark chocolate.

Is it chill filtered?
No — bottled non-chill filtered at 46% ABV.

A 100-to-1 longshot that became a classic — order The Tyrconnell 10 Year Old Sherry Cask Finish online from Del Mesa Liquor, San Diego, CA.