Review: Tullamore D.E.W. Celebratory Phoenix Irish Whiskey
Review: Tullamore D.E.W. Celebratory Phoenix Irish Whiskey
You’ll have to look very closely to distinguish this special edition bottling from Tullamore D.E.W.’s other limited edition release, Tullamore D.E.W. Phoenix.
Tullamore D.E.W. Celebratory Phoenix comes from a single production batch of the Phoenix release and is being launched in honor of Tullamore’s new distillery opening. Just 2,014 bottles are available, and they are available only in select Irish retail outlets.
This isn’t an identical whiskey to Phoenix — far from it, in fact. It is still a blend of pot still, single malt, and grain whiskey, but it is matured in Oloroso sherry cases and finished in virgin oak casks. (Standard Phoenix is matured in Bourbon barrels then finished in Oloroso sherry casks.)
For sure, it’s similar: Instant honey and banana hit the nose, with plenty of almond and hazelnut character on the palate. But then Celebratory Phoenix takes another turn. Quite malty and pungent, it starts off really pushing the malt whiskey component the heaviest, then segueing into a handful mixed nuts before finishing on rich notes of clove, sawdust, and mushroom.
Compared to the standard bottling of Phoenix (which I re-tasted fresh just for this writeup), it’s overwhelmingly different. Phoenix is brighter with fruit and offers more sweetness and more tangy acid to it — and, frankly, it has a better balance among its component flavors. Celebratory Phoenix is distinctly burlier, with a distinct forest floor edge to it. Frankly, I find myself drawn to the sherry-finished standard edition bottling more strongly… which is good, because it’s half the price — and you can actually buy it in this country.
110 proof.
A- / $112 / tullamoredew.com
Tullamore D.E.W. Celebratory Phoenix Irish Whiskey
$112
