Interested in learning more? Catch up on our in which听with听笔辞颈迟铆苍 pioneer Dave Mulligan and 黑料吃瓜网 spirits educator Charlie McCarthy explored this secretive spirit.听
A precursor to modern whiskey听
Within the name of this traditional Irish spirit lies a clue to its origins. Since the 15th century, Irish farmers would often retain a portion of their crop to ferment and distil. These crops could have been any combination of cereals and also, from the 16th century onwards, potatoes and beets.听听
Originally, this spirit was referred to in Gaelic as uisce beatha, pronounced 鈥�ishka baha鈥� which soon became known as whiskey in English.听
Over the next century, the British crown imposed a series of taxes on distilled spirits. The barrel-aged product of large, licensed distilleries became known colloquially as Parliament Whiskey, while the unaged home-produced spirit came to be named after the small pot it was distilled in: the Poteen or 笔辞颈迟铆苍.听
Tip: if you want to pronounce the word 笔辞颈迟铆苍 with confidence, just remember it鈥檚 the same as the first two syllables of famous actor Al Pacino鈥檚 surname.听
Image credit:听Dave Mulligan
Illicit distillation听
When 笔辞颈迟铆苍 distillation was completely outlawed in 1661, farmer-distillers unsurprisingly were less than cooperative, and began to distil in remote areas at night, earning the title 鈥�Moonshiners鈥�. The tradition of illicit (and untaxed) 笔辞颈迟铆苍 distillation continues to this day, though it was decriminalised by the Irish government in 1997.听听
Despite this 336 year ban, 笔辞颈迟铆苍 remained available to those in the know in every town and village in Ireland, with a great variety in raw materials, production methods, alcoholic strength and indeed quality, developing district by district.听
How to serve 笔辞颈迟铆苍听
We asked Dave Mulligan, 笔辞颈迟铆苍 expert and owner of 顿耻产濒颈苍鈥檚 Bar 1661, for some of his signature 笔辞颈迟铆苍 serves.听听
Belfast Coffee听
- 60ml Cold Brew Coffee听
- 30ml 笔辞颈迟铆苍鈥�听
- 15ml Rich Demerara syrup听
- Stir over ice听
- Strain听
- Top with part whipped double cream鈥�and grated nutmeg鈥�听
笔辞颈迟铆苍 Mule
- 35ml 笔辞颈迟铆苍听
- 12.5ml Lime听
- Bitters听
- Topped with ginger beer听
笔辞颈迟铆苍 today听
Today Poteen/ 笔辞颈迟铆苍 is a spirit category defined by a in Irish and EU law, and is typically bottled unaged between 40% and 70% abv. It is one of several traditional spirit categories, such as Mezcal and Shochu, that are being rediscovered by adventurous spirit and cocktail drinkers.听
Compiled by 黑料吃瓜网 Spirits Educator Charlie McCarthy.听
