Over the last three months, I've been working with the lovely folks at Dillon Bass on a special Irish whiskey magazine, which is published in today's Belfast Telegraph. The magazine draws on and builds upon the great work Dillon Bass is doing with its new Whiskey Club initiative.

It was a fantastic project to work on and allowed me to don my editor cap once more, five and half years after leaving the world of magazine publishing for PR. Huge props too to the talented crew at Drinksology, who did a stellar job on the layout and design.

In fact, getting the creative juices flowing again during this project was part of the inspiration for setting up this blog. I wanted an outlet to write more creatively about the great people, places and spaces I'm lucky to discover through my work, as well as some more personal experiences.

Pick up a copy of The Belfast Telegraph today to read it for yourselves. In the meantime, here's one of the features I penned, on the recently launched Belfast Whiskey Walk.

WALK THIS WAY

Belfast’s streets are paved in rich whiskey folklore and its bars, soaked in heritage, feature some of the best collections in the world. Now there’s a new Whiskey Walk that journeys through the city’s whiskey history and is sure to leave you in high spirits…

Whether you’re a whiskey enthusiast or a total newbie, the new Belfast Whiskey Walk will guide you on a journey through eight incredible Irish whiskey styles in five of Belfast’s best whiskey bars.

Designed by NI drinks company, Dillon Bass and the award-winning Taste and Tour (the folks behind the cult Belfast Food Tour), the new Belfast Whiskey Walk launched in September 2016 and it’s already notching up bookings well into 2017.

Bittles Bar

What Belfast’s smallest pub lacks in size it more than makes up for in personality and an absolutely massive whiskey collection. Owned by the Bittles family to this day, John Bittles is such a big whiskey fan that he’s been known to throw salespeople out if they don’t sell whiskey. And his son, Ciaran, who gives a short welcome to kick off the tour, has more than a few great tales to tell.  If you’re in the market for a special, rare whiskey, Bittles should be your first port of call. The tour begins here with a refreshing Jameson, Ginger & Lime to whet the appetite.

The National Grande Cafe

The Whiskey Walk moves on to The National Grande Café – amongst the next generation of Belfast whiskey bars. Cocktails are the order of the day in this NYC loft inspired bar at the gateway to the buzzing Cathedral Quarter, so it really would be rude not to try one. Whilst sipping on a Jameson Black Barrel Whiskey Sour, one of The National’s bartenders provides a guided demo on how to perfect this signature whiskey cocktail.

The Duke of York

Boasting the largest whiskey selection in Ireland, The Duke of York is one of Belfast’s most iconic whiskey bars. There has been a pub on this site since around 1810 and in the past, it’s rumoured to have been known as ‘The Widows’ and ‘The Gluepot’ as they say it was so hard to tear yourself away. Little has changed on that front.

Today, The Duke of York is owned by Willie Jack who has turned Commercial Court into a veritable Brewing and Distilling Museum. He’s somewhat of a collector – which you’ll see from the memorabilia adorning each and every available surface. He has more too – enough to fill about three more bars, he reckons. Commercial Court’s quaint cobbled street just outside The Duke of York is one of the most photographed in the city – walk along it once and you’ll understand why.

Here, the whiskey journey progresses with a guided tasting of Powers Gold Label, served neat.

The Dirty Onion

The Dirty Onion is the next stop on the Whiskey Walk. Walk through the courtyard and the now iconic red Barrelman statue nods to the heritage of this incredible building, which was formerly a bonded whiskey warehouse. The drink of choice here is The Dirty Onion’s signature Boilermaker – a perfect pairing of Jameson Caskmates and Belfast Black stout.

The term Boilermaker - sometimes referred to as a beer cocktail - originated in Philadelphia in the 19th century where steelworkers used to buy the cheapest, nastiest, strongest whiskey and wash it down with beer to get rid of the flavour. The Dirty Onion do things a bit differently and have carefully paired whiskeys with craft beers, served on a bespoke wooden stave, made from a whiskey cask.

The Merchant Hotel

From one of Belfast’s oldest buildings to what is now Belfast’s most opulent, the final stop on the Whiskey Walk is Belfast’s award-winning Merchant Hotel. This Grade A building and former Ulster Bank headquarters has become an iconic Belfast landmark. The Merchant celebrated its 10th anniversary in 2016 but part of its charm is its timeless quality – it feels like it’s always been here.

One of the most decorated bars in the world, The Merchant is home to one seriously impressive whiskey collection. Here the tour is rounded off with a rather special tasting of a premium single pot still Irish whiskey flight including Powers Three Swallow, Greenspot and Redbreast 12 Year Old. Magic.

Tickets for The Whiskey Walk cost £60 per person and can be booked online at www.tasteandtour.co.uk

Like your whiskey? Check out the new Whiskey Club website - a one-stop-shop for all things Irish whiskey.