Waterford The Cuvée whisky review

Waterford Distillery is the brainchild of Mark Reynier, whose previous career encompasses 20 years in the wine trade, before taking on the then-abandoned Bruichladdich distillery in 2000. In 2015 Reynier announced the launch of Waterford Distillery, believing that Waterford has the best barley in the world. Whilst distillation and maturation are commonly judged more than terroir (the idea that the same plant sown in different places will produce different results based on the soil, wider landscape, weather, climate around it) in the world of spirits, Reynier believes these differences can be tasted to create exceptional whiskies.

Reynier bought a large, modern Guinness brewery and recruited nearly a hundred barley farmers across southeast Ireland to build up a patchwork of varying terroir, barley varieties and cultivation methods. Each farm’s contribution is tracked and kept separate at all times, from grain to malt, new spirit and whisky.

That they stick with 'whisky', not 'whiskey' is a hint that Waterford double distil (rather than triple, as is common in Ireland), presumably to retain more malt character. There are now several Waterford whiskies to choose from. There is the Single Farm Origin line, each release a snapshot of the land it came from. The Arcadian Series highlights organic, biodynamic and heritage barley offerings. Then there are The Cuvées, which are built from the breadth of whiskies now available to Waterford in the manner of winemakers. As Waterford grow and mature their stocks, expect this to be the core of their bottlings.