Episode 2.1 – Malt Vs Mashbill – Fionnán O’Connor on Single Pot Still Whiskey

Welcome to series two of Potstilled Radio!

Welcome back to our audio investigation into what makes the world of Irish whiskey tick.

In this episode, I sit down with the author of the #1 resource on single pot still whiskey history in Ireland, Fionnán O’Connor.

Fionnán takes us through the journey that led to him authoring his book, “A Glass Apart”, as well as how he was accepted to undertake a PhD, which investigates the historic mashbills of Ireland, to better understand the economic, historic and socio-economic factors that drove these mashbills.

Ultimately, Fionnán is sternly opposed to the current legal definition pertaining to what can and cannot be called “single pot still Irish whiskey”, and the research uncovered in this PhD will become freely available to any distillery in Ireland, as Fionnán describes it as their “culinary birthright”.

Listen is as Fionnán lays down his case why he believes that we should pay homage to the past and why it is important not to ignore historical precedent in favour of keeping a simple product on a shelf. Fionnán supports his arguements fantastically, while citing from primary documentation, such as the first ever attempt at an Single Pot Still Irish Whiskey definition, which was put forward by the Pot Still Distillers Association – which as Fionnán explains, were the first producer lead lobbying group that, laid down the first written standard of what pot still Irish whiskey should be.

Sit back, listen and enjoy, Potstilled Radio, series 2.

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