Old Tullamore Distillery facts for kids

The Old Tullamore Distillery was a place in Tullamore, County Offaly, Ireland, where they made Irish whiskey. It started way back in 1829. It was the first home of the famous Tullamore Dew Irish whiskey. The distillery closed in 1954 because it had a tough time, just like many other Irish whiskey makers in the early 1900s.

Later, the Tullamore Dew brand was sold to another company, and the whiskey was made somewhere else. But in 2010, a company called William Grant & Sons bought the brand. They spent a lot of money to build a brand new distillery in Tullamore. This new Tullamore Distillery opened in 2014. This meant that Tullamore Dew whiskey was made in Tullamore again, after 60 years!

In 2012, a whiskey museum called the Tullamore Dew Visitor Centre opened. It's in an old building that used to be a storage place for the original distillery.

The Story of Tullamore Distillery

How it All Started

Daniel E. Williams, a key person at Tullamore Distillery, whose initials inspired the name Tullamore Dew.

Back in the 1780s, there were over 30 places making whiskey in County Offaly. Two of these were in Tullamore. But new rules made it hard for many distilleries to stay open. By 1818, only two were left in the whole county.

In 1823, the rules changed again, making it easier to start whiskey businesses. Michael Molloy was one of the new people who decided to invest. In 1829, he opened a new distillery in Tullamore. His family were well-known merchants in the town. By 1832, his distillery was making over 20,000 gallons of whiskey each year!

Michael Molloy passed away in 1846 without marrying. He left the distillery to his five nephews. Later, the distillery was sold to his brother Anthony. When Anthony died, he left it to his nephew Bernard Daly.

In 1886, a historian named Alfred Barnard visited the distillery. He said that Bernard Daly had made many improvements. The whiskey made there was very good, just like the famous ones from Dublin. It was sold all over Ireland, and even in places like Liverpool, London, and Australia. Barnard especially liked some of the eight-year-old whiskey he tried. At that time, about 100 people worked at the distillery. They made 270,000 gallons of whiskey a year. They also had over 900,000 gallons of whiskey getting older in storage.

The Birth of Tullamore Dew

When Bernard Daly passed away in 1887, his son, Captain Bernard Daly, took over the distillery. But Captain Daly didn't spend much time running the business. He left it to the General Manager, Daniel E. Williams. Under Williams, the distillery grew and did very well. He launched the whiskey that still has his initials: Tullamore Dew. The slogan was "Give every man his Dew."

In 1903, the distillery became a company called B Daly & Co. Ltd. Both the Daly family and the Williams family owned parts of it. But in 1931, the Dalys left the business. The Williams family then took full control.

The Story of Irish Mist

The Coffey Still that was used in Tullamore in 1948. It is now a museum exhibit at the Kilbeggan Distillery.

Like many Irish distilleries, the company faced tough times in the early 1900s. This was because of new types of Scotch whisky and problems with selling whiskey to other countries. The distillery even closed in 1925 to save money. It stayed closed for 13 years, reopening in 1937.

In the 1940s, whiskey sales were still slow. Desmond E. Williams, a family member of the original D. E. Williams, started looking for new products. He thought about making a special drink called heather wine. This drink was supposedly enjoyed by old Irish leaders. It was made from whiskey, heather honey, and other plants.

Desmond Williams couldn't find an old recipe in Ireland. He wondered if Irish people who moved away long ago had taken the recipe with them. He put out the word that he was looking for such a recipe. Luckily, in 1948, a refugee from Austria came to Tullamore. They had an old family recipe of Irish origin. This recipe was even better than what Williams had tried to make! The result was Irish Mist, the first modern whiskey liqueur made in Ireland.

In the same year, a special machine called a Coffey Still was added to the distillery. This allowed them to make different kinds of whiskey.

Why the Distillery Closed

Irish Mist was a huge success for the distillery. However, whiskey sales were still not doing well. So, the company decided to focus all its efforts on the liqueur. In 1953, the company changed its name to the Irish Mist Liqueur Company. The distillery stopped making whiskey in Tullamore a year later, in 1954.

In the 1960s, they started running low on whiskey for Irish Mist. The company made a deal with another whiskey maker, John Powers & Son. Powers would take over the Tullamore Dew brand. In return, they would provide whiskey for the Irish Mist liqueur. This decision sealed the fate of the old distillery.

Even though the original distillery is closed, many of its old buildings are still standing. They are used for different things now:

• Bob Smyth's Bar and Lounge: This used to be a millhouse.
• D. E. Williams House: This was the main office.
• Tullamore Dew Visitor Centre: These were old storage buildings.

In the 1980s, the nearby Kilbeggan distillery, which had also closed, became a museum. Since its original whiskey-making machines were sold, three of the four machines from Tullamore were bought. They were moved to the Kilbeggan museum, where you can see them today.

Visit the Old Distillery Site

The Tullamore Dew Visitor Centre, where you can learn about the old distillery.

In 2012, one of the old storage buildings from the original distillery was fixed up. It reopened as a whiskey museum and visitor centre. At the visitor centre, you can find a bar, a restaurant, and a gift shop. They also have rooms for meetings. You can take guided tours and try whiskey tastings. These tours can last from 50 minutes to 5 hours.