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ar from the rolling hills and heather meadows of Ireland, in an industrial corner of north Denver, the staff of Talnua Distillery is creating spirits inspired by the taste of the Emerald Isle. Talnua, which is derived from the Irish-Gaelic for New World, is solely focused on producing single pot still spirits — primarily whiskey — based on Irish traditions and American ingredients, according to founder and head distiller Patrick Miller. “We are the only distillery completely dedicated to that outside of Ireland,” he said. “We are bringing the American terroir to what would have been a traditional Irish whiskey-making practice.” It’s a passion borne of deep-rooted love for Ireland and its native spirit. Over the course of visiting the island year after year, Miller and his wife, Meagan, became enamored of the traditional pot-stilled Irish whiskeys, which had once been a world
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powerhouse. “In 1900, Ireland was making 75 percent of the world’s whiskey,” he said. “It was their heritage style, and it was feeding the British Empire, it was feeding the United States, especially along the coast where bourbon wasn’t as prevalent.” However, after two world wars, American Prohibition, the Irish war for independence, and the creation of the free state that severed much of Ireland from Great Britain, the industry experienced a massive fall. Down from 150 licensed distilleries to two — Middleton and Bushmills — in 1987 when the Cooley distillery was built, Ireland saw its traditional pot-distilled whiskey all but disappear. “This old traditional style nearly died out,” Patrick Miller said. “Irish whiskey became known for blends, such as Jameson.” Enter the Millers, on a visit to Ireland in 2011. That was the year Redbreast 12
came on the market after a long hiatus. They were enjoying the rugby world championship, US vs. Ireland, in a pub, when a delivery arrived. “In walks the first bottles of Redbreast that had hit the market in 50 years,” Miller said. “They bust open the boxes and try us on it. We immediately fell in love.” They continued visiting Ireland year after year, seeing more and more new pot still brands coming out: Powers, Green Spot, Teeling, Middleton. He said they were coming home with suitcases of whiskey when a downturn in the oil and gas sector in which he worked inspired him to learn distilling. Miller landed a job at the Stranahan’s distillery in 2014, while practicing at home making whiskeys with malted and unmalted barley. By 2017, he estimates he made almost 100 batches, adjusting the yeast, grain, cut points, and using the staff at Stranahan’s to bounce his experiments off.
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