by Shamim de Brún
Barrel Club Midleton Distillery is billed as a “chance to explore the world’s most well-known and successful Irish whiskeys, delivered straight to your door.”
Midleton Distillery has revealed their new barrel club membership. As part of the subscription, each member will receive a welcome gift box containing a specially personalised Distillery Edition bottle, tasting glasses and a journal. Then, each quarter a limited-edition whiskey box including a 700ml bottle along with three 50ml samples will be delivered, themed and handpicked by Master Distillery Kevin O’Gorman and his team. Throughout the year you will be reminded of old favourites from Midleton Distillery, and introduced to new whiskeys, with a Barrel Club exclusive liquid promised at least once per year as part of your quarterly shipment box.
The next quarterly shipment, which will be sent in March, will feature an exclusive Powers John’s Lane Cask Strength release, available only to Barrel Club members.
The club is currently only open to residents of the Republic of Ireland. Hopefully, they will expand internationally in the future. The annual price of the subscription is €499 and includes the cost of postage and packaging in the Republic of Ireland.
Whiskey membership clubs have become a thing. Celtic Whiskey has one. Stories and Sips have one. So does Three Drams. But what exactly is a whiskey club membership and how does it work? Traditionally a whiskey club has been a place where you and a few like-minded friends can taste and learn together. More recently it has become a way for internationally and predominantly online whiskey enthusiasts to connect by engaging about the same samples at the same time.
Each Barrel Club membership will also include exclusive access to distillery whiskey education, virtual tastings and a ticket to an in-person experience – a Behind The Scenes tour at Midleton Distillery or a whiskey blending class at Jameson Distillery Bow St., along with other membership perks.
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