Bushmills creates bespoke rock band whiskeys

Bushmills Irish whiskey has created two bespoke single malt whiskies for the headliners of its Bushmills Live music festival, The 1975 and Tired Pony.

Bushmills Irish Whiskey has created two bottlings exclusively for The 1975 (pictured) and Tired Pony (pictured below) rock brand

The Diageo-owned distillery’s master blender Helen Mulholland handcrafted the malts as a gift for the two bands after they played at the exclusive festival at the Old Bushmills Distillery.

To celebrate The 1975’s performance, Mulholland hand-picked the casks from each of the years the band members were born – 1988, 1989 and 1990 – to create the Bushmills 24 Year Old Single Malt Irish Whiskey ‘The 1975’ – Artist’s Reserve, of which only eight bottles exist in the world.

“This whiskey encompasses the core spirit of Bushmills Live – celebrating handcrafted whiskey and handcrafted music,” Mulholland said of the whiskey.

“Each of the casks has a different finish: bourbon, sherry and wine, creating a wonderful combination of flavours.”

While for Tired Pony, Helen created a personalised Single Malt Triple Distilled Tired – Artist’s Reserve blend of Bushmills single malts.

Three types of Bourbon casks contributed to the blend – each said to represent one of the three renowned bands from which Tired Pony was formed: R.E.M., Snow Patrol and Belle & Sebastian.

“I decided to use these not only because they reference the Americana style of music that Tired Pony play, but also because it recognizes the location where their first two albums were recorded,” added Mulholland.

“It was crafted with a touch of whiskey drawn from port finished casks, laid down in 2009 – which was also the year that the band formed.”

The 1975 and Tired Pony played the third Bushmills Live alongside a host of international and local artists including James Vincent McMorrow, Luke Sital-Singh, Matthew and the Atlas, David C. Clements, Rubblebucket and Levity Breaks.

The Artist’s Reserve bottles were created as a gift from Bushmills to the bands and are not available to buy.