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Waterford, the distillery of all superlatives

Waterford is an exception in that it exclusively produces single malts that can claim perfect traceability from the farmer to the bottle. Resolutely visionary, the distillery founded by Mark Reynier also distinguishes itself by distilling organic and biodynamic Irish barley.

The 2021 Selection
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Organic Gaia 1.1
50%, 70cl

Waterford is unquestionably the distillery that best embodies the innovative spirit of Irish whiskey.

It must be noted that behind this major project in the whisky industry is Mark Reynier, the man behind the rebirth of Bruichladdich on the island of Islay.

Convinced by the potential of the Irish terroir, he not only has the ambition to create the most eloquent Irish whiskey, but also the greatest single malt in the world. To achieve this, in 2015, Mark Reynier set his sights on the former Guinness brewery on the banks of the River Suir in the south-east of the country. This choice was guided by the modernity of the facilities originally built by Diageo, but also and above all by the quality of the local barley, which he considers to be the best in the world.

The first “Single Farm” whiskeys ever

After converting the former Guinness Brewery’s facilities to distillation, the first drops of ‘new make’ came out of the Waterford stills in January 2016. The new distillery, which has a production capacity of 1,000,000 litres of spirits per year (LPA), stands out for the very special profiles of its distillates. Mark Reynier gets his barley from 72 farms in South East Ireland, one of the world’s major malting-barley growing regions. These farms, some of which are certified organic or biodynamic, grow their barley on nineteen different types of soil. Thanks to a highly innovative digital logistics system, which ensures full traceability, once harvested, each farm’s crop is malted and distilled separately.

In producing these distillates, Waterford aims to capture the terroir of each farm, that subtle character shaped by both microclimate and the soil, but also by human hands. The goal of this perfect traceability from field to cask is to build an unrivalled library of Single Farm whiskeys. Mark Reynier is convinced that after several years of ageing in the best French and American oak casks, each whiskey with its own nuances can be blended to create the most complex and exceptional single malts ever created.

An original and ambitious exploration of the terroirs

In terms of innovation, thanks to Mark Reynier, a true explorer of terroirs, Waterford is truly exceptional. And not only because it has chosen to produce single malts in a country best known for its single pot stills and triple distilled whiskeys. In addition to being at the forefront of traceability since 2016, Waterford has been the first Irish distillery to produce “Organic Trust certified” Irish whiskey. Mark Reynier is also the first distiller in the country to produce single malts from biodynamic Irish barley. Waterford has been Demeter certified since 2018.

The distillery founded by Mark Reynier is also the first in the world whisky industry to participate in important academic research on terroirs and spirits distilled from barley. To demonstrate the influence of terroir on the flavours of barley distillates, the Waterford team is working with Dr Dustin Herb from Oregon State University, one of the industry’s most influential researchers, and the Irish agricultural organisation Teagasc. The results of this ground-breaking work in the world of whisky should be published by the end of 2020. This year, Waterford also made a splash with the launch of its first ever single malt. A resolutely visionary whisky in the image of Mark Reynier, its creator.

Chronology

Mark Reynier, one of the key figures in the world of whisky