Boann PX Cask Single Pot Still Irish Whiskey Review
Established by the local Cooney family in 2015, it is a family owned and ran distillery and spirit production began in 2019. While waiting for their own spirit to come of age they launched The Whistler range of whiskies to help pay the bills. This also helped them learn about cask management and blending.
They are committed to reviving Ireland’s rich heritage in producing single pot still whiskey and their distillery is a thoroughly modern facility to help them explore the past.
The most interesting feature of the setup is the use of nano technology in the necks and lyne arms of the stills. This creates an uneven surface on the internal walls of the necks and lyne arms allowing for greater copper contact. It also means that these parts will last longer than standard construction.
The lyne arms also have an internal coil that can turn on or off a cold water supply so reflux can be increased or decreased easily. These means they can make very heavy, oily distillates or very light, floral distillates.
The first Boann whiskies came to market on June 21st 2024 with the release of 3 pot still expressions. These are GI compliant, that is they follow the current irish whiskey technical file rules of how to make a ‘pot still’ whiskey – must have at least 30% malted barley/30% unmalted barley and up to 5% other grains.
However, they also partnered with whiskey auteur Fionnan O’Connor, who has done countless hours researching old mash bills of the Irish distilleries of yesteryear and taken 10 of those mash bills and distilled them. As they don’t comply with the current technical file they cannot be called ‘pot still’ whiskey on the label but they very much are pot still whiskey.
These mash bills explore heavily the use of the other grains such as oats, wheat and rye and having been lucky enough to try those 10 new makes as part of a package they sold in 2021/22 I can tell you that I can’t wait to try them as fully matured whiskies. Until then let’s take a look at the PX finished pot still they released in 2024 and I happily found here in Florida recently.
Boann Single Pot Still PX Finish 47% abv/94 proof $70/£52/€60
Mash Bill: 40% malted barley, 55% unmalted barley, 3.75% oats, 1.25% rye
Natural Colour / Non Chill Filtered
Nose: the un-malted barley sings here – ginger, rye bread and treacle. Then pineapple chunks, marzipan, tangerines, toffee apples, figs and leather. Some French polish. Milk chocolate and an umami savoury note kind of like beef bouillon.
Palate: Good mouthfeel – oily and nicely mouth coating. Damson jam, honey, raisins and fresh fig followed by ginger, clove, peppermint and stem ginger. Stewed apples, dried apricot and dark chocolate and some sweetened black coffee.
Finish: Medium length with plenty of spices, orchard fruit, px sweetness and coffee notes.
Score: 7 out of 10
Overall: For years the single pot still market has been dominated by Irish Distillers and their products such as Green Spot and Redbreast. Some of the first ‘new’ pot still whiskies from the likes of Glendalough and Teeling disappointed me on release but did show promise. This Boann is a cracking whiskey from the get go and I’d easily recommend this over the entry Green Spot and Redbreast 12 which are both the same price here in the US.
The mash bill, the distillation, careful maturation, the bottling strength and presentation all play their part to produce a whiskey that for me should be a must buy for any pot still whiskey enthusiast.
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