The Making of Hyde
An exceptional, small-batch, hand-crafted Irish whiskey collection, HYDE is an independent ‘bonder’ of Irish whiskey owned by Conor Hyde. To create their whiskies, the family hand-selects only the very finest Irish whiskey, made by only the very best Irish whiskey distilleries, which are then in turn ‘finished’ in a variety of vintage oak casks. Each variety is made at one distillery partner in County Cork, before being matured in their bonded warehouse in Little Island, County Cork.
At HYDE, it’s all about the wood. Using generations of experience, the team at HYDE hand-select only the very finest oak casks from around the world to give each variation of HYDE Whiskey its distinct character profile. The team are meticulous about matching their whiskey with the right casks. Conor travels around the world, sourcing unique barrels for aging including toasted Oloroso Sherry Hogshead casks from Spain; dark rum from Barbados, bourbon barrels from Kentucky and ex-Burgundy vintage Pinot Noir casks from the Cote’d’Or vineyards near Dijon, France. The team also experiment with port, madeira, cognac and even beer casks, all of which produce a broad range of unique whiskey expressions to explore.
The Hyde family is passionate about bonding and purveying smooth Irish whiskey to their extremely strict HYDE quality standards. In order to be called an ‘Irish Whiskey’, it must be distilled and matured on the island of Ireland in wooden barrels for three years, with a minimum of 40% ABV. At HYDE they go a step further, with every whiskey at least 46% ABV for a fuller, richer flavour experience with a long, smooth finish. What’s more, they use non-chill filtered to add complexity to their profile as well.
With so much family history, and after winning almost every award out there including the World Whiskies Award, the World Spirits Competition, the Irish Whiskey Awards, and the Ultimate Spirits Challenge to name but a few of the 40 medals to their name, the Hyde family certainly know a thing or two about creating one of the best Irish Whiskeys in the world.
Proud Whiskey Bonders Since 1640
The Hyde Family has been involved in Irish Whiskey since 1640, when the family had a well-known pub at “Tinker’s Cross” in West Cork from 1640 until 1962. It was here that they became whiskey bonders – an almost lost art save for a few families such as the Hyde’s, which have kept up the tradition. From their pub, the Hyde’s would sell fine Irish whiskey and draught stout straight from wooden oak casks and quickly became famous for always having the finest bonded Irish whiskey in West Cork.
HYDE Irish Whiskey is produced by ‘Bonders’ with years of family drinks history and knowledge – 380 years to be precise – all culminating in a premium collection of Irish whiskey matured and ‘finished’ to perfection in the idyllic landscape and temperate climate of County Cork, Ireland.
The Hyde family are proud not to be distillers, but purveyors and curators of some of Ireland’s finest Irish whiskey, passionate about the age-old craft of ‘Bonding’. For this careful process, Conor Hyde personally oversees each and every distillation batch to ensure all of HYDE’s whiskey is made to only the very highest standard using 100% Irish malted grain.
Where Innovation Meets Tradition #ITSALLABOUTTHEWOOD
At HYDE Whiskey, the focus is on the art of Wood Management and Cask Maturation. 80% of the final whiskey taste is as a direct result of the interaction between the maturing ‘new make’ whiskey and the wooden cask in which it is aged, so making sure to select the right barrels is an important job. Once the casks have been selected, HYDE flame a specific char level at least 250 degrees Celsius for between 15-45 seconds to each vintage oak cask type before filling. This helps open micro-channels in the wood allowing the whiskey to venture deep into the oak in order to create an Irish Whiskey which is rich in character and truly unique in taste.
The time and effort put into the cask wood management and the sourcing of high-quality vintage oak casks from around the world is just one of the reasons HYDE has been one of the leading success stories of the Irish whiskey renaissance over the last decade.
HYDE Irish Whiskey – A true taste of Ireland. #ITSALLABOUTTHEWOOD
Hyde Irish Whiskey
hydewhiskey.ie
@hyde_irish_whiskey
The diverse Single Malt, Single Grain, Blended and Limited-Edition Expressions (only 5,000 bottles made) the HYDE Irish Whiskey collection include:
| HYDE NO.3 PRESIDENT’S CASK Single Grain Bourbon Cask Matured Hyde No.5 is a triple distilled, Single grain, Irish whiskey from one single distillery location. Originally distilled in a traditional “Coffey” Copper Column still from pure Corn / maize grain. Made in small batches, it is matured for at least 6 years in flame charred, first fill, ex-bourbon casks from Kentucky in the U.S.A. | NOSE – Cinnamon and clove with succulent sweet caramel flavours. Complex and spicy with sweet American bourbon notes. TASTE – Robust single grain spices with a touch of cracked black pepper give way to a buttery vanilla and charred oak taste. FINISH – Long and satisfying, ending with a silky combination of oak and barley. 46% alc./Vol. |  |
HYDE NO.6 PRESIDENT’S RESERVE Special Reserve Sherry Cask Finish 18YO Single Malt & 8YO Single Grain Irish Whiskey with a Sherry Cask Finish Hyde No.6 is created using 18 Year Old Single Malt and 8 Year Old Single Grain Irish whiskey which were both originally aged in flame charred American Bourbon barrels. These two carefully chosen vintages are then married together for a further 9 months of ‘finishing’ in Spanish, Vintage, toasted, Oloroso sherry cask Butts, which is why we call it ‘Double Wood’. Each Oloroso Sherry butt is 491 Liters / 108 gallons in size. | NOSE – Delightfully floral notes of vanilla, sweet, honey, caramel, chocolate, and mixed fruit, infused with spices. TASTE – Wonderfully smooth yet complex, creamy yet fruity with notes of caramel, honey, apricot, and apple, with a silky rich texture. FINISH – Rich & Oaky. It lingers in the mouth with a rich long finish. 46% alc./Vol. |  |
HYDE NO.8 HERITAGE CASK Special Reserve Stout Cask Finish Special Reserve blend of: · 75% Single Grain; fully matured in a first fill, flame charred, bourbon cask. · 25% Single Malt; fully matured in a first fill, toasted, Oloroso sherry cask. · All finished in an Irish STOUT cask. Firstly, craft Irish stout from the www.cottonball.ie craft microbrewery in Cork City is aged in a first fill, ex-Bourbon, American white oak cask for 3 months. The stout is then disgorged from this cask. The whiskey is then put into the STOUT cask for a further 6 months to ‘finish’. | NOSE – A distinctive full bodied malty aroma with sweet vanilla and roasted coffee bean overtones. TASTE – Sweet, hoppy, biscuit taste, with a distinctive roasted coffee bean twist. FINISH – Sweet caramel, perfectly balanced with a long, smooth, creamy finish. 43% alc./Vol. |  |
Conor Hyde
HYDE IRISH WHISKEY (Hibernia Distillers Limited)
Cork Bonded Warehouse, Sitecast Estate, Little Island, County Cork, Ireland T45 YF43
E-Mail: [email protected]
Mobile / Cell: +353 ( 0 ) 87 6539676
Tel: +353 (0) 21 4614240
