All You Need to Know About Redbreast's New 18 Year Old Cream Sherry Cask

Irish single pot still label Redbreast has added its first-ever 18 year old expression to the core range. The new bottling is the first permanent addition to the lineup since the 93-point Redbreast 27 year old was launched in 2020. Created by master blender David McCabe and master blender emeritus Billy Leighton, Redbreast 18 year old uses a cask recipe that delivers its own distinctive flavor, separate from the profiles of its other age-stated expressions. The secret to accomplishing that is the use of cream sherry casks.

Cream sherry is a sweet wine made from blending dry, nutty oloroso sherry with the rich, sweeter Pedro Ximénez style. Cream sherry was a household staple in the UK and Ireland in the 20^th century, but it fell out of favor as sherry drinking became less popular, and cream sherry in particular developed an unfashionable reputation. The cream sherry name is a rare sight on whisky labels, because distillers prefer to talk about casks seasoned with a blend of oloroso and PX sherry rather than use the term. Leighton admits to a certain nervousness about the reaction by sherry purists when they see the label, but positive feedback from Redbreast drinkers on single barrel experimental batches strengthened Redbreast’s resolve. Now the goal will be to get Redbreast drinkers to see this as the best of both oloroso and Pedro Ximénez, responsible for the fruitiness of Redbreast 18 year old as well as the notes of hazelnut, chocolate, and dry tannins.

The sourcing of cream sherry casks from Antonio Páez Lobato cooperage in Spain was initiated more than three decades ago by Brendan Monks, then master of wood, predating Leighton’s time with Irish Distillers. Each cask is seasoned with cream sherry for two years. The 46% ABV single pot still whiskey was initially aged in bourbon casks for the first 5 or 6 years, before being dumped into the cream sherry casks for the remainder of the maturation. This recasking process was introduced by Billy Leighton during his tenure as master blender.

The complexity of this whiskey extends beyond the cream sherry casks. It is a triple-distilled single pot still whiskey using a combination of light and medium pot still distillates made at Irish Distillers’ Midleton Distillery. Redbreast traditionally favors a combination of bourbon and sherry casks. Redbreast 18 year old includes refill bourbon casks, and mostly first-fill, (and some second fill) oloroso casks. The profile of Redbreast 18 year old also includes a small contribution from ruby port casks—a subtle nod to the style of Redbreast 27 year old. While the cream sherry casks are at the heart of Redbreast 18 year old, the port casks enhance the fruitiness.

This new 18 year old age statement plugs the gap between the 15 and 21 year old expressions. After 18 years in the warehouse, casks can have lost 40% of the volume to the angels’ share. Redbreast is made at Midleton Distillery, which also produces the whiskeys for Jameson 18 year old and Jameson 18 year old Bow Street. After a series of limited-edition releases in the American Oak series, the Iberian series, and Redbreast Dream Cask, there is no need to enter a ballot or queue up as Redbreast 18 year old will be widely available with a suggested retail price of $249.