I quite enjoyed the first of this week’s trio of Irish whiskeys. That was yesterday’s Bill Phil from W.D. O’Connell. That was a heavily peated, single malt from an undisclosed distillery (probably Great Northern). Today I have a blended whiskey from Walsh Whiskey. Walsh Whiskey are blenders who produce two lines/brands: The Irishman and the more famous Writers’ Tears. I confess that I am not really sure what the distinction between the two lines is supposed to be. At any rate, there are a number of labels in each line. Currently, there seem to be six different iterations of The Irishman. Today I am reviewing what I think is the entry-level whiskey in the line: the Harvest. This is a blend of triple distilled whiskeys: 70% single malt and 30% single pot still, all matured in bourbon barrels. What the sources of the single malt and single pot still spirit that goes into the blend are, I don’t know. I don’t expect an entry-level blend to be anything very out of the ordinary but I am hoping that it won’t be extraordinarily bad. Let’s see.

The Irishman – The Harvest (40%; from a miniature)

Nose: A pleasant start with a mix of cereals, corn syrup and a bit of orange peel. Gets a little dusty on the second sniff and there’s also some butterscotch now. With a bit of air there’s some oak spice in there as well and some cream. With more time the fruit moves from orange peel to berries. A touch of water pushes the oak spice away but leaves the rest mostly unchanged.

Palate: Not as much happening on the palate. The oak is the main player and provides more of a bite than the alcohol; the texture is not as thin as I’d expected it might be. On subsequent sips the pot still character has more to say as it gets spicier (and also a bit grainy). Water brings out more of the sweeter notes here—berries, a hint of cherry and peach.

Finish: Medium-long. The oak expands here; it’s not tannic, it’s the warming spices that keep going for a while. As on the palate with water.

Comments: This is an easy-drinking blend with no real flaws. It could have been a lot better at 46%—then again the oak might have been too loud at a higher strength. Anyway, nothing I need a bottle of but I wouldn’t turn down a pour.

Rating: 82 points.