Powerscourt Distillery

About the distillery

Powerscourt Distillery is located on Powerscourt Estate in Enniskerry in Co. Wicklow, and it combines a historic estate with modern Irish whiskey production. Here, Fercullen Irish Whiskey is created, and the site markets itself as a complete whiskey experience from grain to glass. For a whisky lover, it’s especially interesting that the distillery draws on local heritage as well as new releases ranging from classic bourbon-matured single malt to more experimental casks.

History

The story really gains momentum in 2018, when a plan was put in place to transform the old Millhouse at Powerscourt Estate into a leading distillery and whiskey experience. The Millhouse is a listed heritage building with roots going back to the 1730s, and the project had a clear goal: to bring whiskey production back to Enniskerry in Co. Wicklow after more than 100 years. It’s a narrative where place, building, and whiskey are closely connected. The name Fercullen has become linked to this estate, and the distillery describes the brand as an expression of quality, ingenuity, and the ambition to go beyond what’s expected. Today, Powerscourt Distillery stands as one of the places where the newer Irish whiskey story connects directly to a specific landscape and a clear local identity.

Raw materials and production

Production revolves around malt and grain, but with a range of expressions that show how the distillery works with different raw materials and distillation choices. Fercullen Single Malt is made with 100% malted barley, while Fercullen Single Malt Cask Strength is made with locally sourced barley and pure Wicklow mountain water. Fercullen 15 Year Old is distilled from a mash of corn and malt, and Fercullen Falls is a 50/50 blend of malt and grain whiskey with a high malt portion. Several releases are non-chill filtered, and several are bottled with natural colour. The Cask Strength bottling is described as triple-distilled, and Cask Select is based on both double-distilled and triple-distilled whiskey, depending on the cask type. This creates a range where the distillery’s own whiskies both stand on their own and are blended together, while working with different strengths and textures.

Maturation and cask types

Maturation is an important part of Powerscourt Distillery’s style. Bourbon casks appear as a recurring foundation, particularly ex-bourbon barrels and first-fill ex bourbon barrels. In addition, there are more pronounced finishes and influences: Madeira casks on the 15-year-old single grain, Oloroso Sherry and Pedro Ximénez in the 21-year-old expressions, Sicilian Marsala Wine Cask in the 16-year-old single malt, Amarone influence in Estate Series 3, and barley wine and stout casks in Cask Select. This creates a span between the classic vanilla and oak profile from bourbon and the more fruity, spiced, and vinous nuances from dessert wines and special casks. Several releases also highlight that the whiskey is matured and bottled with minimal intervention.

Whiskeys

The core range centres on Fercullen Falls, Fercullen Single Malt, Fercullen Single Malt Cask Strength, and Fercullen 15 Year Old Single Grain Irish Whiskey. Alongside these come more ambitious and often older releases such as the 21-year-old single malt in the 2022 and 2023 releases, Estate Series 3: The Gates, Cask Select, and the limited 16-year-old Marsala Finish. The range thus spans from an easy-to-access blended whiskey to matured single malts and exclusive limited editions, and the common thread is a focus on clear malt character, bourbon maturation, and elegant layers of fruit, vanilla, and spice.

Whisky	Type / series	Alcohol	Age	Cask and style	Tasting profile	Status
Fercullen Falls – Small Batch, Blended Irish Whiskey	Blended Irish Whiskey	43 %		First-fill ex-bourbon barrels and Ex-bourbon and new heavy char oak casks	A 50/50 blend with a high malt percentage, and it marks the start of a new phase with the distillery’s own whiskies in the blend.; Nose: Cinnamon and fresh orchard fruits, herbaceous with brown sugar, toffee and a distinct maltiness.; Palate: Rich, soft and sweet. Vanilla icing and malt spice with a peppery clove finish.; Finish: Warming malt spice with good length, drying at the extremities of your tongue.	Current; Core range; In stock
Fercullen Single Malt Irish Whiskey	Single Malt Irish Whiskey	46 %		Bourbon barrels	The distillery’s first single malt, 100% distilled at Powerscourt and described as the first single malt whiskey distilled and released from County Wicklow in over 100 years.; Nose: Toffee, baking spices, vanilla, dessert apples, pears, soft leather, cinnamon, nutmeg, baked buttered pastry crusts.; Palate: Vanilla Custard, soft oak, salted caramel, digestives, tarte tatin.; Finish: Warming oak spices, soft leather, honeyed almonds, stewed fruits.	Current; Core range; In stock
Fercullen Single Malt Cask Strength	Single Malt Irish Whiskey	56.6 %		Ex-bourbon barrels	Triple-distilled single malt with Wicklow mountain water and locally sourced barley, bottled at cask strength.; Nose: Brown sugar glazed pie crust, stewed apple and rhubarb, toffee and custard.; Palate: Dulce de leche, browned butter shortbread, poached pears.; Finish: Thick custard, cracked peppercorn, nutmeg, leather.	Current; Core range; In stock
Fercullen 15 Year Old Single Grain Irish Whiskey	Single Grain Irish Whiskey	41.5 %	15 years	First-fill ex bourbon barrels and Second-fill Madeira casks; finish: Madeira finish	Aged single grain whiskey, distilled from corn and malt and finished in Madeira casks.; Nose: Vanilla, fudge, honeyed almonds, dried apricots and mango.; Palate: Hot buttered popcorn, orange and lime marmalade, dry oak spice.; Finish: Creamy vanilla fudge with candied orange and lime peels.	Current; Core range; In stock
Fercullen 21 YO Single Malt Irish Whiskey (2022 Release)	Single Malt Irish Whiskey	46 %	21 years	Bourbon barrel matured whiskeys and Spanish Oloroso Sherry and Pedro Ximénez finished whiskey; finish: Sherry finish	The first 21-year-old release from the distillery, with bourbon-matured malt and sherry finish.; Nose: Honeydew melon, lychee, rich vanilla fudge, pear drops and soft leather.; Palate: Vanilla fudge with dried fruits, dark chocolate with orange oil, cracked hazelnuts.; Finish: Sweet fudge, candied cherries, fruit cake and drying-spices.	Discontinued; In stock
Fercullen 21 YO Single Malt Irish Whiskey (2023 Release)	Single Malt Irish Whiskey	46 %	21 years	Bourbon barrel matured malt whiskey and Spanish sherry influence; finish: Sherry influence	Second batch of the 21-year-old single malt with pronounced sherry influence.; Nose: Honeydew melon, lychee, rich vanilla fudge, pear drops and soft leather.; Palate: Vanilla fudge with dried fruits, dark chocolate with orange oil, cracked hazelnuts.; Finish: Sweet fudge, candied cherries, fruit cake and drying-spices.	Discontinued; In stock
Fercullen Estate Series 3, The Gates Single Malt	Single Malt Irish Whiskey	46 %		Bourbon and Amarone matured whiskeys; finish: Amarone cask influence	Third and final release in the Estate Series with Amarone influence.; Nose: Summer fruit meringue, strawberry, cherry, plum, lime, mint, apple, cut hay.; Palate: Vanilla, honey, custard drizzled over poached summer fruits with digestive biscuits.; Finish: Fruit pudding giving way to soft oak spice.	Discontinued; In stock
Fercullen Cask Select – Wicklow Wolf Release	Irish Whiskey	48.5 %		Ex-barley wine barrels and Ex-stout barrels; finish: Barley wine finish and Stout finish	Limited edition blend in barley wine and stout casks with an allocation of 850 bottles.; Nose: Toffee, orange blossom honey, lime sherbet, tropical fruit oils.; Palate: Chocolate orange candy, lime drizzle cake, custard.; Finish: Tropical fruits, milk chocolate biscuit cake.	Discontinued; Sold out; 850 bottles
Fercullen Single Malt 16 Year Old	Single Malt Irish Whiskey	54.8 %	16 years	Fresh bourbon barrels and Sicilian Marsala Wine Cask; finish: Marsala finish	Limited single malt with Marsala finish and only 1,306 bottles produced.; Nose: Sweet vanilla and honey with a twist of lemon, layered with malty notes, walnuts, almonds, cinnamon, and bursts of tropical fruit—pineapple, mango and banana.; Palate: A rich, silky complexity unfolds with layers of sweet malt, fruit, and nut flavours, offering a perfectly balanced mouthfeel.; Finish: Long-lasting sweetness from ripe fruits and a delicate nutty warmth to close.	Discontinued; Sold out; 1306 bottles
Fercullen Irish Whiskey Trilogy Gift Pack	Gift Pack				Gift pack with three 50 ml bottles: Fercullen Falls, Fercullen Single Malt and Fercullen 15 Year Old.	Current; In stock; 3 bottles

Whiskey style and tasting profile

Fercullen has an overall profile of fresh fruit, especially apples, pears, tropical fruits and citrus, which often sits on top of vanilla, fudge and creamy malt. The bourbon casks provide vanilla, toffee, caramel and soft oak, while the sherry, Marsala and dessert wine influences pull the whiskey in the direction of dried fruits, dark chocolate, candied cherries and nutty notes. In the more spiced expressions, cinnamon, nutmeg, clove and pepper come through clearly.

Visit the distillery

Powerscourt Distillery can be visited, and the site offers tours, tastings and a whiskey experience at Powerscourt Estate. Visits can be booked, and there is a Visitor Centre gift shop where, among other things, the Fercullen Trilogy Gift Pack is sold. The experience is described as a day out for whiskey lovers, and the visit is closely tied to the distillery’s location in the middle of the estate environment in Enniskerry.
See times and book a visit.

Philosophy and craftsmanship

The distillery’s stated line is to work with engineering spirit, quality, and a willingness to exceed expectations. Emphasis is placed on having a home base in Wicklow and letting the place shape the whiskey, while also sticking to non-chill filtration and natural colour on several releases. The idea of grain to glass and the complete whiskey experience also features clearly in the story.

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