On location: Rocking the Irish whiskey world at Slane Castle

Ask any Irish person (and many overseas visitors) what springs to mind when they hear the words Slane Castle, and they’ll respond by listing a who’s who of the rock and roll world. Thin Lizzy, The Rolling Stones, Bob Dylan, Queen, David Bowie, Bruce Springsteen, U2, Guns ‘n’ Roses (who return in May) and many others have played the magnificent Slane amphitheatre by the River Boyne in County Meath, less than an hour from Dublin.

This proud tradition of welcoming rock royalty began in 1981 when the Conyngham family – which has owned and worked this land since 1703 – diversified from farming into a new line of business.

Now, in 2017, that diversification continues. Who knows, in years to come consumers might summon up the Slane name and think not only of rock and roll, but of Irish whiskey too.

That’s because the Conynghams, through a partnership with Brown-Forman, have just launched Slane, the latest Irish whiskey brand to hit shelves in duty free (initially through ARI) and domestic markets. It comes to the market nearly two years after Brown-Forman announced the purchase of Slane Castle Irish Whiskey Limited, and a US$50 million investment in the business. The partners broke ground for a new distillery in September 2015, with production set to commence later this summer, and a visitor centre is planned too.

The triple-casked Slane whiskey is an ARI exclusive in Ireland initially (during April), with further duty free and domestic markets to follow, led by the UK and USA, and roll-out to Australia later in the year.

Family ties

The long-term plan is exciting and invigorating – capacity is planned for 600,000 cases per year eventually – and is already unfolding as a story of family and heritage melded with modern techniques and innovation.

Alex Conyngham tells us: “It all started with family and that defines the outlook on both sides. It began over a lunch between myself and Garvin Brown [Chairman of Brown-Forman]. Brown-Forman had previously distributed Bushmills in America and had publicly declared an interest in getting back into the category.

“Both sides did due diligence prior to a deal. I spoke to many Brown-Forman employees during that process and the message I got was that their business all came back to family. That was reassuring for us. We felt we were a good fit. We each proceeded with caution at first but now we are delighted. They have enabled us to turn our vision into reality.”

For Conyngham, each party brings clear strengths to the relationship.

“We bring a location, access to land for barley making and of course water from the River Boyne. We also bring a story, a heritage and a passion for Irish whiskey. Brown-Forman bring their own heritage and knowledge in whisky-making, wood expertise in terms of maturation, and most importantly commercially, they bring us route to market.”

The latter point is key; Brown-Forman brings retailer relationships built on the strengths of its American whiskey business, now bolstered by entry to Scotch single malts and Irish whiskey.

The roll-out plan

Brown-Forman Director Global Travel Retail Europe, India, Middle East & Africa Nick Mogford outlines the early plans. “We launch with ARI exclusively in Ireland during April. It was a logical start in the home of Irish whiskey. The superb Irish Whiskey Collection that ARI have developed presented a good opportunity to partner with them, which is a first for us. Over the next few months the GTR plan will focus on the UK and Ireland – notably airports serving a strong base of Irish and Ireland-bound consumers. We will take a phased approach at UK airports, seeking those that are most relevant.”

Brown-Forman Customer Marketing Manager Global Travel Retail Colton Payne adds: “We’ll expand this year into north-eastern USA, in strong Irish whiskey markets such New York, Boston, even down to Baltimore. We have a confirmed plan for duty free and domestic in that region over the next year.”

Mogford notes: “We have long-standing relationships with key retailers and this is an opportunity to further those. The strength of Jack Daniel’s and Woodford Reserve can help us supply category solutions using our presence in American, single malt Scotch and Irish. We can do it from a permanent merchandising perspective and from a promotional viewpoint as well.”

Route to market is critical, but the story behind the brand and of course the liquid are no less vital. Communicating those elements coherently will be a challenge and a determinant of Slane’s ultimate success.

Conyngham says he is confident about the liquid, which benefited from time spent in three casks over 18 months before being blended together once more to create the first whiskey.

“The use of virgin American oak, seasoned ex-Tennessee whiskey and oloroso casks has created a lovely blend. There is a strong sherry influence in some Irish whiskies and I wanted that influence here; it lends texture to the liquid. In future we will keep that style when we use our own spirit.”

He adds: “What is important is that we give people the opportunity to taste. The liquid does the talking and we are confident in our liquid. Huge effort went into this blend – effectively two years of a secondary maturation to bring it on through the three cask types. You have to be smooth in this category but this whiskey is also robust and complex.”

Telling the story

The other element that requires careful communication is the story behind Slane, one that will be given a voice through the visitor centre. Crucially, tours will allow access to many parts of the working distillery. What resonates here is the use of the land and the investment in restoration of many older buildings.

The Slane Castle farm already produces around 2,000 tons of barley. That will be put to use in the whiskey-making process, as will the plentiful water supply from the Boyne, allowing Slane to control production ‘from grain to glass’.

Two stable yards from the 18^th century are also being fully restored and put to use in the facility, one of which was designed by renowned English landscape architect Lancelot ‘Capability’ Brown. With the rebuilding of a clock tower and neo-gothic façade, Slane will boast a striking entrance way for visitors. Elsewhere, the care and attention to detail is clear: when we visited local stonemasons were matching each new stone to the older ones they adjoin for impact and a strong Sense of Place and heritage.

In a neat touch, three centuries-old walled gardens will also become features, with a barley garden and orchard helping to tell the story of the soil and the land. On the other side of the complex, an old water mill will be restored too, offering the gateway to a water walk, while a barley fields walk will also be developed.

The old stables will house a visitors’ bar, using some of the old loose boxes and fixtures that have lain unused for many years.

“In each stall a booth will be named after a horse that occupied it,” says Conyngham. “Horses are an important part of our story. The tack room will be restored too. It’s important for us to celebrate our equine heritage.

“It all ties back into agro-industrial history – traditionally the farm used horses to take grain in from fields, adding value and sending it out to market. Now we are using our barley, adding value and making whiskey.”

Sustainability is a vital element, one that Conyngham feels strongly about. Waste from the production process will be used to heat the facility and the house, ensuring that no element is cast aside. Renewable energy will be a key part of this story; even rainwater will be collected and used as boilerfeed.

Three copper pot stills and six column stills, recently put in place, will allow a blend of products to be made, from malt to grain to pot still whiskey. What will be intriguing here will be how Brown-Forman’s barrel-making expertise and tradition plays a part in developing new styles and tastes as Slane production grows.

Conyngham says: “We have enough inventory to service demand in the coming years. We will then begin introducing our own distillates into the equation, using the same triple cask method, and that’s when it becomes really interesting.

“Irish whiskey making is about respecting tradition but about innovation too, and a lot of that will come from the wood expertise of Brown-Forman. That will allow us to add new flavour profiles. Our first blend is our flagship today but over the next ten to 20 years we’ll expand using innovation. Innovation in the cask is one thing, but also on the input side we grow our own barley, which is key. We can decide on different varieties using different soil types and these can be added to our portfolio in coming decades.”

Because grain whiskey matures quicker than malt or pot still whiskey, a grain spirit will likely be the first edition released using Slane’s own liquid, thought that is not confirmed. With production starting later in 2017, it will probably be around 2022 before it appears.

The Irish are coming

This project takes place against the backdrop of a surge in Irish whiskey sales worldwide, driven principally by Jameson but with other brands catching the wave of popularity too.

Irish whiskey category remains a small sales proportion of the spirits business worldwide, but awareness is growing, and production is returning to the country. Four years ago there were only four distilleries operating in Ireland. Today, there are 16, with a further 11 planned, according to the Irish Whiskey Association (IWA). The IWA expects the 2015 worldwide sales figure of 7.7 million 9-litre cases to hit 12 million by 2020, supported by over US$1 billion of investment.

Conyngham says: “I’m excited about the category having a bigger presence in global travel retail. It’s already happening. The retailers see the level of growth that Irish whiskey enjoys so we expect that part of the store will grow. We need to make sure Slane is a driving force in that mix.”

On a related note, Mogford says: “If you look at the Brown-Forman portfolio, it has been refined in the past six to 12 months. The categories we are playing in are high growth categories, they have relatively few players and there is room to grow.”

For all its recent growth, Irish whiskey brands have yet to make their presence felt at the ultra-premium end of the market, something that could change in time.

Conyngham says: “We are priced about +20% above Jameson [€31 in ARI duty free; €49 duty paid; €33 for 70cl in Ireland domestic –Ed] and that’s a good first step. We are comfortable about where we are positioned and we deliver a very good quality liquid for that price point. The ambition will be to expand the portfolio upwards in terms of price.

“I would love to take it in a super-premium direction though of course that takes time. But it’s a long term game. The ultra-premium market is under-developed so in coming decades we can address that. The category overall has a long way to go. There are certain territories where it has hardly scratched the surface. One positive is that there is no low to value end offer in the market, and I hope it stays that way.”

Given the huge advance investment required, the time it takes to produce the spirit and crucially, the importance of maintaining quality, it’s not easy to pick winners among the new wave of Irish whiskey distilleries.

But Slane looks to have every chance. It has the backing of the Brown-Forman powerhouse, a facility under construction on a hugely impressive scale, the great back story of Slane Castle itself and – as we witnessed on a visit to the promotion at Dublin Airport during April – strong resonance among travelling consumers.

[inarticlelink image=”https://moodiedavittreport.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/07/Slane-castle-outside-e1493017363280-scaled.jpg” heading=”The Moodie Blog: Slane Castle aims to rock the Irish whiskey world” summary=”Ask any Irish person what names resonate when they hear the words ‘Slane Castle’, and a who’s who of the rock and roll world trips off the tongue. In years to come though, Slane Castle may resonate for another reason too: Slane Irish Whiskey.” link=”http://www.themoodieblog.com/slane-aims-rock-irish-whiskey-world/”]

So what will be the key to ensuring Slane becomes a success? Alex Conyngham has a firm answer.

“It’s about telling the right story clearly,” he insists. “It’s about leading with liquid, giving people a chance to taste above all else. It’s about strong communications, including through packaging. It should have clearly defined, strongly differentiated positioning. We have achieved that with our first line and hopefully that will continue to define us.”

It’s a simple formula: tell a great story well. If they can make that happen, the Conynghams and Brown-Forman will have struck a new chord in the Irish whiskey market.