What are these products?
Bushmills is an Irish whiskey brand from the world’s oldest licensed whiskey distillery. King James granted the original license to distill on April 20, 1608. The distillery is located in Bushmills in County Antrim, Northern Ireland, on the River Bush, where the mills initially processed the grain to make whiskey.
How are they similar?
Both expressions are blended Irish whiskeys, meaning there is single malt whiskey (distilled just from malted barley at one distillery) and grain whiskey (distilled from corn). Single Malt whiskey forms the backbone for all Bushmills products, and the brand uses a higher proportion of single malt whiskey in their blends than the Irish whiskey category. All their Single Malt whiskey is triple-distilled in traditional Irish copper pot, and the proprietary design has been the brand’s logo for three centuries.
How are they different?
Bushmills Original is a blend of 45 % Single Malt Whiskey, using only Irish malted barley, and 55 % Grain Whiskey made from corn (maize). Next, the whiskey is matured for a minimum of 3 years with an average age of 4 years in a combination of Kentucky bourbon barrels and Spanish Oloroso sherry casks and bottled at 80 proof (40 % ABV).
Bushmills Black Bush is a blend of 80 % Irish Single Malt Whiskey and 20 % Irish Grain Whiskey, matured for 8 years in a combination of 20 % Kentucky bourbon barrels and 80 % Spanish Oloroso Sherry casks, and finally bottled at 80 proof (40 % ABV). This product is best remembered by the “Rule of 8s” (80 % single malt, 80 % sherry cask aging, and aged for 8 years).
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