The Whiskey Jar has been on my radar for a little while. A bar that specialises in whisky in one of my favourite bits of the NQ? Of course I was going to pay attention. They appeared quite quietly, with none of the fanfare of some of their more outgoing neighbours.
Thanks to little deal with Jameson Irish Whiskey, myself and fellow malt fan Katharine decided to book and use this as an opportunity to scope out the new bar.
Arriving straight from work and in need of food as well as a starter drink, we were thrilled to see they sold Pieminister Pies. As a pair of northern girls we straight away ordered a Moo Pie each, one with peas, one with mash and both with gravy. Tummies sorted it was time for something refreshing to kick the night off.
And so we opted for the Whiskey Jar G&T. This is no ordinary G&T though, as the name would suggest it contains a little hint of something malty and it works beautifully. The citrus, gin, tonic and hint of whisky go together to create something infinitely refreshing and different. Another one for my favourites list.
The pies were, not unexpectedly, perfect; the peas lovely and minted, the gravy tasty. The only teeny fly in my ointment was the mash. Which seemed like instant rather than home made. A letdown in the midst of such quality fare.
However, we were here for whisky and whisky is what you get. The bar is gorgeous, exposed brick, wood and superbly comfy Chesterfield sofas. The number of whiskies on offer behind the bar is excellent – not at your Britons Protection levels, but a very good number and I believe more are being added all the time. I was a kid in a sweetshop, getting ever giddier at the ones I spotted, from Ardbeg to Jura. And the gin selection is nothing to be sniffed at either.
With full stomachs, the whisky tasting could begin (a smidge late) and with Stephen from Jameson leading the way it was going to be an interesting evening. I know a fair amount about Scotch whisky, Bourbon and even Japanese whisky, but Irish whiskey was going to be a whole new ballgame.
Beginning with a brief history of distillation in Ireland, it has been going on for 1000 years, we compared the flavours of Irish whiskey to those of Bourbon and Scotch whisky as well as the differences in distillation and ageing.
Sadly, my expertise didn’t see me through to win the bottle of Jamesons on offer, though I was able to identify the mystery whisky handed to me towards the end of the tasting, ahead of some of the others in the group (hurrah for me), I failed at the distillation question hurdle (boo) being asked one that was seemingly harder than the others. I’m sure that’s not just a sore loser talking. Honest.
This taster session is perfect for a beginner – Stephen’s style is open, honest and perfect for new discoverers of whisk(e)y and you couldn’t pick a more comfortable venue. It would be so easy to stay afterwards and explore the differences in whiskies further after the tasting, or just have a try of something new.
But don’t just take my word for it. Get over there and try for yourself.
