Hattrick for Powerscourt Distillery
The Icons of Whisky Ireland Awards celebrate the years of hard work that go into every bottle. From the distillers themselves and brand ambassadors to visitor centre managers, bars, bartenders and the industry’s communicators, a great deal of craftsmanship, skill and knowledge are imparted at each stage of the process.
Noel’s honour follows his recent award for outstanding contributions to the Irish whiskey industry at the Irish Whiskey Association’s Chairman’s Awards last November.
Noel has been at the forefront of innovation in Irish whiskey for over 30 years and 2020 has been no different. From the relaunching of the flagship Fercullen 8 Year-Old to exclusive trade partner collaborations of single cask releases (Fercullen 13 Year-Old Single Grain with James Fox, Fercullen 18 Year-Old Cask Strength Muscatel finish single cask release with German distribution partner Irish Whiskey.de), to the sellout success of the limited-edition release of Fercullen Five Elements in November, all showcase the skills acquired and honed over many years to distil and blend exceptional Irish Whiskey.
Noel, a founder member of the Irish Whiskey Association, was involved in the drafting of the Irish Whiskey GI Technical File. His recent appointment as Chairperson of the Irish Whiskey Association Technical Committee allows him to continue contributing to the development and enhancement of the Irish whiskey technical file and recognises his expertise in Irish Whiskey.
Highly commended
Despite the considerable challenges facing the tourism and hospitality sector in the wake of Covid-19, the Powerscourt Distillery team have focussed on the fundamentals, delivering great customer experiences with their tours and tastings and building brand awareness and engagement with their consumers through digital innovation. These efforts were also recognised with an Icons of Whisky Ireland Visitor Centre Attraction of the Year Highly Commended award and an Icons of Whisky Ireland Campaign Innovator of the Year Highly Commended award for the ‘Grains of Wisdom’ digital webinar initiated by the marketing team from early April through to June last year.
Two new European Distributors have also been announced.
In France, BBC Spirits is a national importer and distributor and a major importer in France and Greater Europe of luxury spirits from Europe/Japan/The Caribbean Islands/the US and Mexico.
Powerscourt Distillery’s Fercullen Irish Whiskey will also launch with Munros in Belgium, importers of spirits in this market.
The Fercullen range will be in both markets in time for St Patrick’s Day.