| Country | ireland |
| Region | County Cork |
| Established | 2015 |
| Owner | Independent — Sam and Maud Black (Blacks Brewing & Distilling) |
| Type | Whiskey, gin & rum distillery (co-located with brewery) |
| Number of stills | Two copper pot stills — "Bonny" (2,800L) and "Morrigan" (1,600L), built by Frilli Impianti, Italy, installed 2020 |
| Visitor center | Yes |
| Status | Active |
| Phone | n/a |
Blacks of Kinsale Distillery is an Irish whiskey distillery located at Cappagh, near Kinsale, County Cork, Ireland. It was founded in 2015 as an expansion of the Blacks Brewing & Distilling site established in 2013, and is currently owned and operated independently by husband-and-wife founders Sam and Maud Black. It is one of Ireland's first co-located breweries and distilleries, and its team also became the first in Ireland to produce rum crafted entirely on the island.
Blacks began in 2013 when Sam Black, gifted a home-brewing kit by his wife Maud, turned the hobby into Blacks Brewing & Distilling on Ireland's Wild Atlantic Way in Kinsale, County Cork. In 2015 the company expanded with a purpose-built distillery alongside the existing brewery, and early production centred on small-batch Irish poitín and an experimental Irish gin developed by Maud. As a young distillery without its own matured stock, Blacks initially sourced aged Irish whiskey and finished it on site in a range of distinctive casks under its "Maverick Whiskey" banner, while in 2018 it launched a Spiced Rum followed by an award-winning Golden Rum. A major step came in 2020, when the distillery installed two copper pot stills, nicknamed Bonny and Morrigan, shipped over 2,000km from Italian coppersmith Frilli Impianti; that December the stills produced Blacks' first ever spirit distilled in Kinsale. The resulting liquid was laid down to mature and eventually released as "First Flight," the distillery's first whiskeys distilled, matured and bottled entirely on site, in both single malt and single pot still styles.
Blacks' core Irish whiskey range includes sourced-and-finished expressions such as Triple Threat, a three-cask blend (bourbon, sherry and virgin American oak) bottled at 40% ABV; Maple Mayhem, finished in maple bourbon casks at 43% ABV; Black Smoke, a heavily peated Irish whiskey at 43% ABV; and the limited Citrus Galaxy IPA Cask Irish Whiskey, finished in the distillery's own IPA beer casks. A standout limited release is the Blacks 18 Year Old Single Malt Irish Rum Cask Finish, bottled at cask strength (56% ABV) in a numbered edition of 563 bottles — billed as the world's first whiskey finished in an Irish rum cask. The distillery's own house-distilled whiskeys are sold under the "First Flight" name: First Flight Single Malt (Port Cask) and First Flight Single Pot Still (Oloroso Sherry Cask), both non-chill-filtered, natural-colour releases bottled at cask strength (59% ABV).
Blacks of Kinsale distillery is located at Blacks Lagoon, Cappagh, Kinsale, P17 AY10, Co. Cork, Ireland.
Blacks of Kinsale distillery was founded in 2015.
Blacks of Kinsale distillery is owned by Independent — Sam and Maud Black (Blacks Brewing & Distilling).
Blacks of Kinsale distillery is from County Cork, ireland.
Yes, Blacks of Kinsale distillery welcomes visitors.
You can buy Blacks of Kinsale whisky at Glenbotal.co.uk. We currently stock a selection with free UK delivery on orders over £99.
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About Glenbotal
The idea of Glenbotal came to us naturaly: as whisky lovers, we were always on the lookout for new experiences in the whisky world. That’s why we created Glenbotal and became our very own first customers. We buy unique and hard to find spirits from auctions, ballots, and private collections. Then, we share them with a small circle of friends and people who can appreciate a good dram.