Killarney Distillery — County Kerry Single Malt Whisky

Killarney Distillery is an Irish whiskey distillery located in Fossa, on the outskirts of Killarney, County Kerry, Ireland. It was founded in 2020 by Killarney Brewing and Distilling Company, a local brewer that had operated in the town since 2015, and closed in 2025 after the business entered liquidation. It was built as one of Ireland's largest independently owned, co-located distillery, brewery and visitor-centre complexes, producing single malt and single pot still Irish whiskey on the Ring of Kerry.

History

Killarney Brewing and Distilling Company began as a craft brewery in Killarney, County Kerry, in 2015, building a local following for its beers before expanding into whiskey production. In 2020 the company developed a purpose-built distillery in the townland of Fossa, just west of Killarney town on the Ring of Kerry, investing around €24 million in a roughly 62,000 sq ft facility combining a distillery, brewery and visitor experience, with views over the Macgillycuddy's Reeks and Killarney's lakes. While its own single malt and single pot still spirit matured, the company released an early whiskey in 2021 — an eight-year-old blended Irish whiskey finished in Imperial Stout casks, limited to 1,092 bottles. Opening of the Fossa site was repeatedly delayed by the COVID-19 pandemic and global supply-chain disruption, and the business subsequently struggled with rising costs, high US tariffs on Irish whiskey exports, and the collapse of proposed merger talks with a US strategic partner. In 2025 Killarney Brewing and Distilling Company entered examinership, an Irish court-supervised process that protects insolvent companies while a buyer is sought; after three months no suitable investor was found, and in July 2025 Ireland's High Court placed the company into liquidation, with Deloitte's James Anderson appointed liquidator and all 54 staff made redundant.

Quick Facts

• Region: County Kerry, Ireland
• Founded: 2020 (distillery); parent brewery established 2015
• Owner: Formerly Killarney Brewing and Distilling Company (independent); in liquidation since July 2025
• Status: Closed

Core Range

Killarney's planned core range centred on single malt and single pot still Irish whiskey distilled at the Fossa site, though wide releases of its own-distilled spirit had not been rolled out before the company's closure. Its best-known bottling was Killarney Irish Whiskey, an eight-year-old blended expression finished in Imperial Stout casks, released as a limited edition of 1,092 bottles in 2021 at €100 each; specific ABV for this release was not publicly disclosed.