Bushmills

The Old Bushmills has been distilling whiskey from that date onwards, and the Old Bushmills Company was officially established in 1784. It is today part of the Diageo Spirits Group. The distillery is located in Bushmills, in Antrim County, North Ireland, a few miles away from the Giant’s Causeway, and the last operating distillery in North Ireland.

A dozen of distilleries were still opened in the region in the early 20^th century. Only three remained in the 1950’s. The Comber distillery closed in 1953 and the Coleraine closed in 1978. Bushmills’ history is chaotic: its origins hark back to 1608 but the region had been distilling whiskey since the 12^th century.

In 1276, Sir Robert Savage, owner of the Bushmills town is said to have fortified his troops with "a mighty drop of acqua vitae". In 1490, the Book of Leinster mentions a local alcohol served in Bushmills town.

The distillery starts growing from 1860’s onwards, and is bought for a mere 500 Sterling Pounds. In 1855, a fire destroys partly the distillery, which is then rebuilt in the Scottish style of that time, with pagoda roofs typical of Scottish distilleries. At the same time, Bushmills stops the production of Irish pot still and manufactures Single Malts.