Midleton
Master Blender Billy Leighton has been
inducted into the Whisky Magazine Hall
of Fame after 42 years in the Irish
whiskey industry.
In recognition of his 42 years in the
industry and contribution to the growth
of the Irish whiskey category with Irish
Distillers, Middleton distillery Master
Blender Billy Leighton has been inducted
into the Whisky Magazine Hall of Fame in
a special ceremony at The Dean Hotel,
Dublin.
The Icons of Whiskey Ireland aim to
recognise the diversity and passion
within the Irish whiskey industry today.
The awards were presented by Rob
Allanson, Editor of Whisky Magazine who
said: "Billy Leighton is an Irish
whiskey legend. His contribution to the
revival of single pot still whiskey has
re-shaped the Irish whiskey landscape
and whiskey fans around the world owe
him a debt of gratitude. On behalf of
Whisky Magazine, I’m delighted to
welcome Billy into the Hall of Fame and
look forward to seeing what he’s got up
his sleeve next."
With almost a decade of experience as
Master Blender behind him, Billy has
diligently managed the mature stocks of
Irish whiskey at Midleton Distillery in
Co. Cork and used his logistical nous to
forecast future demands. Some of Billy’s
finest triumphs have come in the past 10
years with the revival of the much-loved
Redbreast whiskey amongst his greatest
achievements. The launch of
Redbreast Dream Cask in May
2018 has arguably been the crowning
glory of his work with Ireland’s most
famous single pot still whiskey and will
be remembered as Billy’s dream whiskey.
Billy, commented: "I’m deeply honoured
to join the pantheon of whiskey greats
in the Whisky Magazine Hall of Fame, not
least an old mentor of mine, Barry
Crockett. It has been a pleasure to
watch Irish whiskey regain its rightful
place amongst the world’s leading
spirits and I hope I’ve been able to
make a contribution to this. Finally, I
must thank the rest of the production
team, past and present, whose dedication
to craft and excellence has supported in
the creation of some of the finest Irish
whiskeys of all time, it’s been a
pleasure and I look forward to what we
can conjure up next."
Conor McQuaid, Chief Executive Officer
and Chairman at Irish Distillers,
commented: "It is a pleasure to offer my
congratulations to Billy Leighton upon
his induction to the Whisky Magazine
Hall of Fame – he has been a true
inspiration to Irish Distillers and the
wider whiskey world over the course of
his many years of dedicated service. His
commitment to crafting whiskey that is
worthy of revitalising the category has
inspired a whole new generation with
Irish whiskey and for this we will be
forever grateful. We doth our cap to
Billy and raise a glass in tribute to
our Master Blender."
Irish Distillers was also honoured with
a number of top accolades including
Visitor Attraction of the Year and Irish
Whiskey Producer of the year.
You
will find
the current Redbreast whiskey range as
well as the rest of Irish Distillers
portfolio of whiskey which Billy
oversees such as Jameson, Powers,
Middleton and more available from specialist whisky shops such as
The Whisky Exchange and
Master of
Malt
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