Ireland is an island off the west coast of Britain, and is divided into two distinct parts: the Republic of Ireland, an independent state, and Northern Ireland, which is part of the United Kingdom. The following description refers to the beverages produced in the Republic of Ireland.
Wine is grown and produced in Ireland, although in limited quantities. Despite the unlikely climate, there are a handful of producers growing grapes and vinifying wine in the southern half of the country, most notably in County Cork and County Clare. The wines are largely sold to a local consumer base.
Whiskey is the beverage more readily associated with Ireland. The question of whether Ireland or Scotland was the first to produce a spirit distilled from malted barley is still debated, although there is movement towards a general agreement that whisky was introduced by the Irish to the Scottish, not vice versa.
The lack of a conclusive resolution to this question is reflected in the two spellings for what is essentially the same beverage. The Scotch (Scottish), Japanese and Canadian spelling is 'whisky' (plural 'whiskies'), while the Irish and American spelling is 'whiskey' (plural 'whiskeys'). The American spelling was no doubt brought to the United States by Irish migrants, and consolidated by the success of Irish whiskeys in America during the 19th century. Ironically this success caused the collapse of the Irish whiskey industry in the early 1900s, when the American prohibition era (1919–1933) cut off Ireland's key export market.
Irish whiskeys are generally distilled three times, while twice is more common in Scotland. By legal definition, Irish whiskey must be produced in Ireland and matured in wooden casks for three years or more. A uniquely Irish category of whiskey is pure pot still whiskey, which is distilled from a mixture of malted and unmalted barley in a copper pot still. This style is distinguished by its slightly spicy character. Very few Irish whiskeys are produced using peat-fuelled fires, so they do not have the smoky character associated with their Scotch cousins in Islay, made 50 miles (80km) away across the Irish Sea.
The Knappogue Castle label from County Clare has become a much-respected malt in the United States, since its introduction and development in the latter years of the 20th century. Irish cream (a blend of whiskey, cream and coffee) is another traditional Irish drink, and has become internationally known through a small number of brand names.
