Midleton Very Rare Chapter Four Is a Breathtaking Blend Priced at $54,000
Midleton Very Rare is widely known for producing some of the best Irish whiskey. Its eponymous annual release often sells out in days—if not hours—while its various other limited editions can cost hundreds, if not thousands, of dollars. That’s certainly the case with Midleton Very Rare Silent Distillery Collection, which recently revealed Chapter Four, an astonishing spirit whose €50,000 (about $54,000) price tag might be even more breathtaking.
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For the last half decade or so, Irish whiskey has been going through somewhat of a renaissance. Brands like Teeling brought Dublin its first new distillery in 125 years, while cognac companies like Camus got into the game via Lambay. Midleton Very Rare, however, needed no sort of whiskey synchronicity to raise its game. The distillery has been making impressive and unique whiskeys since 1984.
Like Jameson, Powers, and Redbreast, Midleton Very Rare is owned by Irish Distillers, a subsidiary of the French drinks conglomerate Pernod Ricard. Based in the East Cork town of Midleton, from which it gets its name, the brand makes its whiskeys at the New Midleton Distillery, which replaced the Old Midleton Distillery in the mid-1970s.
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Midleton Very Rare Silent Distillery Collection Chapter Four emerged from the depths of the Old Midleton Distillery. The 48-year-old Irish whiskey was finally shepherded into the bottle by master distiller Kevin O’Gorman, who also worked on Chapter Three of this collection.
On the nose, the whiskey offers notes of chocolate-dipped honeycomb with caramelized red apples, quince jelly, coffee cake, and vanilla-scented cream. Additional aromas of cedarwood, cigars, and floral notes help to give it a full and complex fragrance. The palate finds an array of ripe fruits, including peaches, plums, and apricot, alongside chili oil, ginger, pot still spices, Roquefort cheese, and oak. The finish features stone fruits, soft spices, and oak, which linger before slowly fading away.
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The whiskey comes in a mouth-blown decanter shaped by the craftsmen and craftswomen of Ireland’s House of Waterford. Master craftsman John Galvin created the bespoke cabinets the decanter comes in. Galvin and his team hand-make each cabinet from select lacewood, which conjures images of barley fields and the natural bounty at the heart of the whiskey. To finish, the cabinets are dressed in premium shagreen leather and enhanced by detailing in sterling silver and oak reclaimed from Irish whiskey vats.
[$54,000; midletonveryrare.com]
